Forget It
by 123nnana
Summary: Percy's reacquainted with an old friend. Who? Calypso. Making peace between her and Annabeth isn't that easy, and finally, there's only one alternative left. Dump one. Turns out those rumors about Calypso being a seductress, just might be true. Percabeth.
1. My Pleas are Ignored Again

_Murphy's Law: Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong._

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"Come _on_ Percy!" Annabeth yelled at me over her shoulder as I hurried to get my shoes. We were going to catch a movie and grab some dinner while Paul and my mom were out on a date.

"Coming!" I called after her as she stepped out the door.

Annabeth and I had started dating after the war had ended. It was a lot easier to be in a relationship when evil ex-friends and scary Titan lords weren't always getting in the way. Oh, and the absence of life-or-death situations helped out some too. So, all-in-all, life had been pretty good ever since Kronos had been defeated, and all of those new demigods had started getting claimed. So many clambered over the property line in the two weeks following the war, that I was pretty mad that the gods hadn't claimed them before, so we could have had more troops during the war. But by now it had nearly 2 years, and everyone had been trying to forget that incident. It did truly seem like nothing more than a bad dream now, a nightmare that took a hell of a long time to wake up from.

Annabeth and I were heading to the theaters to watch Alvin and the Chipmunks. I know, it's a kids movie, but being demigods, pretty much the only movies we liked were of the action persuasion, mostly because they reminded us of our childhood. Since there were none out, the only movie we could really watch was one that involved high-pitched voices to preoccupy our ADHD minds.

I ran to open the passenger door before Annabeth got to it. I know it's cheesy, but I was trying to be a good boyfriend, and this is what they did on TV.

Annabeth raised an eyebrow at me before sitting down in the car.

"So, Percy," she said as I sat down. "Any reason as to why you seem to be so eager tonight?"

I shrugged. The truth was, next week was Annabeth's birthday. I usually didn't remember until the last day, and then went out to buy some crappy present for her while my mother yelled at me about "being irresponsible" or something like that. This time, I had remembered, and I wanted to celebrate, because it probably would never happen again.

"So, how's Olympus?" I asked her, hastily trying to change the subject. Her eyes immediately lit up.

"Oh my gods, we're nearly finished, and it's going to be so amazing! We started the temple to Apollo yesterday and…" all I pretty much heard after that was "blah, blah, blah". I found myself staring at her. Her blonde hair seemed to shine even in the dim light of the sunset. She was wearing the owl earrings her dad had gotten her, and the perfume my mom had given her for her birthday last year (I had asked her to put my name on the card as well.) I was absorbed in the way her clear grey eyes caught the sunlight when she suddenly yelled "PERCY!"

"WHAT?" I yelled back.

"Keep your eyes on the road, Seaweed Brain." A car horn honked behind me.

"Oh yeah."

She rolled her eyes. "Could you just safely drop me off at the theaters before you decide to go crashing your car into a tree or something? We can't all be invincible."

I flashed a wide grin. "It's pretty cool, being invincible and all, isn't it?" She just rolled her eyes again.

* * *

We walked out of the movie, holding hands while Annabeth explained to me, in excruciating detail, exactly how they got the chipmunks's voices to sound so squeaky. As in what programs they used, how they recorded it, and pretty much everything else that had to do with voice alteration that I hadn't really wanted to know about. I tuned her off, preoccupying my mind instead by wondering how she could know all of this.

"Uh, yeah. So what do you want for dinner?" I asked, cutting her off after marveling at her brilliance got too boring.

"I don't know, whatever."

"How about we go back to my place and order some take-out?"

She smiled. "Sounds good."

We reached my house at about 10:30. Mom and Paul still weren't home, thank the gods, so I'd have some more alone time with Annabeth. My mom had helped me pick out her present, and I prayed to pretty much every god that I had ever heard of that for once, nothing would go wrong. I wanted her birthday to be special this time. She was turning 18, which was a big thing, coming of age and all, and I wanted her to know that I cared about her, and remembered her big day.

It was strange how Annabeth could just keep talking and talking without ever realizing that no one was listening. After coming back into the conversation I realized she was talking about how stupid and illogical fortune cookies were, as was her favorite thing to do every time we had Chinese food.

"Percy? Are you even listening?" Annabeth seemed to realize that I was paying more attention to her face than what she was actually saying. It was actually interesting the first time, but I'd heard her spiel about fortune cookies too many times now to actually pay attention.

"Sure I am."

"Fine, I'll just stop talking since you don't seem to care what I have to say," she pouted.

"Come on Annabeth, you talk about the same thing every time we have Chinese food."

"It's not my fault you love fried rice so much. And you know fortune cookies piss me off, how can I not gripe about them?"

I laughed. "OK, OK, I won't say anything about your hate of fortune telling sweets next time."

She smiled and rolled her eyes at the same time, something she was remarkably good at.

"So, you know what's next week?" I asked playfully.

"Flag Day?"

"Besides that."

"I don't know. Why don't you tell me?" she feigned.

I grinned. "Well, I know this girl who has a birthday next week. I think she's turning 18 or something like that."

Annabeth raised her eyebrows, her beautiful smile widening. "Really? And you remembered this? I was under the impression that you had difficulty remembering important days."

I shrugged. "People can chan—" the doorbell decided to ring right at that moment. "Probably the food," I muttered, my spirits dropping. I had it all set up and _now_ the delivery guy had to show up.

But the most peculiar thing happened when I opened the door. I felt winded, like I'd just been punched in the gut, but in a good way, if that's possible. Everything seemed dreamy, unreal, as I stared, eyes wide, at the person in front of me. The person with long, shiny caramel-colored hair braided with gold over her shoulder; large, coffee-brown eyes; and a beautiful, heart-shaped face.

"Perseus!" she yelled, giving me a huge hug.

It was Calypso.

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	2. I Get Pissed Off Again

"_When angry, count to four. When very angry, swear." – Mark Twain_

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"_PERSEUS" she yelled and ran to give me a huge hug._

_It was Calypso._

"C-Calypso." Percy choked out. She let go of him and stepped back, smiling. "You're…you're here. How?"

She laughed in a clear, bell-like voice. "Because of you, dear hero. Your wish to have me freed from Ogygia. The Fates have lifted all the curses placed on me."

Freed from her curses? There was no mention of curses in her myth. A look of comprehension dawned on Percy's face, and I realized that he knew something I didn't. I cleared my throat.

Percy turned around. "Uhm…er…Annabeth, this is Calypso. Calypso, Annabeth." He muttered while waving his hands between us.

Calypso raised an eyebrow and looked over me. I suddenly felt self-conscious. Calypso had light brown hair braided over her shoulder with gold, chocolate-brown eyes that twinkled as she looked at me, and was wearing a flowing white Greek chiton. She was beautiful.

"Hello," she said, her voice abruptly changing from sugary-sweet to... contemptuous?

"It's a pleasure to meet you." I held out my hand, trying to keep my voice level. I glanced at Percy, who was staring at me nervously, so maybe I wasn't doing a very good job.

Calypso looked at my hand, but didn't shake it. "You as well."

I put my hand down.

"Let's uh, sit down." Percy said. Calypso sat down on the large chair, while Percy and I sat on the sofa.

"So Calypso," Percy began. "Not to sound rude, but what are you doing here?"

Her voice went back to normal. "I…I didn't really know where to go after being freed. All I knew was that I was definitely not staying on that island, and this was the first place I could think of." Her perfect brown eyes widened, and her eyebrows pulled together. She looked so forlorn and pitiful that even I felt like comforting her. "I'm sorry if I'm interrupting something."

"Oh no. Nothing, me and Annabeth were just hanging out." Percy said.

My temper flared. Just hanging out? We were on a _date_. And _me and Annabeth_ wasn't proper grammar.

That's when I realized just how angry I was. Call it nerdy, but I always noticed even the smallest mistakes in grammar when I was infuriated. I unclenched my fists in an attempt to calm down.

"Yeah, we were _just hanging out_. So, Calypso, do you have any plans as to what you want to do now that you're freed?" I heard a sharp intake of breath and glanced next to me. Percy's eyes were wide as he stared at me. What had I said?

"No, not really. The first thing I thought when Lord Hermes told me the good news was Percy. I suppose I will have to see where it goes from here."

I was starting to like her less and less. No plan? The first thing she thought of was Percy? I mean, really, are you kidding me?

"Uh, so do you have any place to stay tonight?" Percy stammered.

"Well, no actually." I light blush crept up her cheeks, which only made her look more pretty and vulnerable, but I could see the smugness still on her face.

"Uh well," is starting all of his sentences with "uh" going to be a new thing? "Me and Annabeth," there he goes again,. "were going to go to camp next week, but we wouldn't mind going a few days early, would you Annabeth?"

I bit my lip. "Of course not."

"C-camp Half-Blood?" Calypso stuttered. Her smug demeanor faded a bit. "Am, am I allowed to go there?"

"We'll see." Percy stated simply. "You can stay here tonight if you'd like. I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind."

"Thank you Perseus!" she cried, fluttering her eyelashes.

"Uh, you're welcome."

"I think I should be getting home now." I broke in, standing up and grabbing my jacket.

Percy glanced at me, as if just remembering that I was still there. "Sure. I'll drop you off."

"I can walk," I nearly hissed. I tried to control the venom in my voice. "You shouldn't leave Calypso alone. It's not that far."

"But it's the middle of December." said Percy blankly.

"You don't want to be rude to your _guest_." And with that I walked out the door, into the brisk cold of New York.

* * *

Ok, ok, so maybe I overreacted a bit.

I knew the story about Calypso. That she fell in love with just about every hero that came across her island. But none of them stayed, and neither did Percy.

So there was nothing to worry about, right?

Wrong.

Percy and Calypso were headed off to camp tomorrow, and I had just realized that I couldn't go until next week because of the Olympus project. Who knew what could happen in a week? But once again, I'm probably just overreacting.

Still, Calypso said something about being "freed from her curse" or something. Maybe she was talking about the fact that out all of the times she had fallen in love, it had always been left unrequited. Now that curse was broken. What if Percy fell in love with her again?

No, that was unlikely. Aphrodite thought that Percy and I made "such a cute couple", so she wouldn't break us up. Hopefully.

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**Please disregard the fact that the Chinese food they ordered never came. I couldn't really figure out which to part to add it in, so I just dropped it altogether. R&R!**


	3. I Say Goodbye Again

"_I try to avoid goodbyes. They only sadden me." – John Gay_

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I don't get Annabeth. One day she won't talk to me, and the next, she's laughing and acting normal again.

She seemed to be getting along well with Calypso. I don't know what her problem was the other day, but she seemed to be sincerely trying to make friends with Calypso.

We were all at my house, where my mom had insisted we had to come to before going to camp. Annabeth had to supervise something on Olympus, so she wouldn't be coming until next week. I would miss her a lot, seeing as I wasn't used to going a whole day without seeing her face.

I tuned back into the conversation my mom, Annabeth and Calypso were having, just in time to hear my mom launch into a story about when I was a baby.

"I remember, when Percy was 2 years ol—"

"Mom!" I interrupted. "We should really be getting to camp now. We have to be there by sunset, unless you want the cleaning harpies to eat us."

"Oh, you're right. Come on, we'd better get in the car." She grabbed my bag and opened the front door. "Bye, Annabeth sweetie. Percy, don't be too long now." She gave me a meaningful look and headed out the door.

"You go ahead." I said to Calypso. "I'll be right out in a minute."

She bit her lip. "Are you sure?" she asked worriedly.

I smiled. "Yeah. You go; I'll catch up in a sec."

She nodded and went out the door.

I turned to Annabeth. "So, are you sure that you can go on for a whole week without me?"

She smiled and punched me in the arm, which didn't really hurt because of the whole "invincible" thing, but I feigned being hurt anyway. "Ow." I said, rubbing my arm.

She laughed and shook her head. "I think I'll survive."

"But I don't think I will. I mean, 7 days without you constantly punching me and calling me a moron?"

"Seaweed brain."

"Oh sorry, you call me _Seaweed Brain_, not moron. But seriously, I'm afraid you might go crazy missing me,"

"It's just a week Percy. I'll barely even notice."

"Oh really?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Yup."

"You sure about that?"

She put her hands on her hips and leaned closer to me. "Yes."

"Even without a goodbye kiss? And without that present I got you? You know, since it _is_ your birthday in 2 days.

"What present?"

"Huh? Did I mention a present? If you don't really care, then I'll just give it to you at camp next week."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

"Oh, then I guess I'll be going…"

She put her hands on my back and pushed me out the door. "Kay, bye Seaweed Brain."

"Hold up!" I turned around and grabbed her hand. "I really don't think you can go a week without the present, so I'll just give it to you anyway." She just rolled her eyes again while I pulled the small box out of my pocket.

"Happy birthday Annabeth." I said as I handed it to her.

She raised an eyebrow at me before opening the box. Her expression suddenly softened as she gazed at the owl-shaped pendant. She came forward and nearly crushed me in a hug.

"Thank you, Seaweed Brain." She whispered.

I smiled. "No problem."

I heard a cough and turned around. Calypso was standing at the door, blushing. I quickly let go of Annabeth as I felt her stiffen.

"Percy, your mother said to come quickly, or we would be late to your Camp."

"Uh, okay. I'll be out in a sec."

She smiled warmly. "Yes." She walked out the door.

Annabeth started to pull back, but I grabbed her hand again. "Wait a second. About that goodbye kiss…" I leaned in.

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**Sorry it's so short! R&R!**


	4. My Birthday Is Ignored Again

_Since boredom advances and boredom is the root of all evil, no wonder, then, that the world goes backwards, that evil spreads. This can be traced back to the very beginning of the world. The gods were bored; therefore they created human beings. - Soren Kierkegarrd_

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I was going crazy. What was wrong with me? All I could think about, all I could hear, all I could see was him. I was going psycho.

I remembered watching this TV show once, where this guy went psycho after his wife left him. Then they had to put him in a straight-jacket and lock him up, and...

Oh great, now I'm even starting to think like Percy

I hadn't talked to him in 2 days, and yet I was acting like this. It was just 48 hours, for Zeus's sake! I just needed to calm down, and finish the measurements for this statue of Apollo.

But, being ADHD, sitting here concentrating on how large Apollo's "biceps" (which he told me look too small on statues when they're in actual dimension, so I should double their size) should be, seemed much less appealing than thinking about Percy.

Maybe I should Iris-message him. I checked the time on my computer. 12:45. He was probably in the dining pavilion at lunch right now, and I don't think he wants me materializing in front of him, and the rest of the camp.

I sighed. I guess I should go get some lunch now.

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Well, lunch is over, now what am I supposed to do? Just sitting in my dorm room, staring at the wall isn't very fun. My roommate, Alice, had already left for summer break, since she's going on some cruise with her folks.

Hmm…lunch is probably over at Camp-Half Blood now. Maybe I should Iris-message him.

I went over to the balcony. And you're probably wondering why there's a balcony in my dorm room. Well, my mom, Athena, had wanted me to get the "best architectural education possible", but since I wanted to stay in New York, she sent me to "the best architectural school in the greater Manhattan area." And, it's a fancy-pants school, in case you haven't noticed already.

I grabbed the hose, turned the nozzle to "fine mist" and pressed it. Immediately, a shower of water burst out of the hose, causing a rainbow of colors in the bright, sunny day.

I fished a drachma out of my pocket and threw it straight at the rainbow.

"O goddess, accept my offering. Percy Jackson, Camp-Half Blood."  
Immediately, an image started to form.

It was at the beach, along the spot me and Percy used to always visit to get away from the loud, bustling campers. He was sitting along the bank, along with another girl with caramel brown hair. She wasn't wearing a Camp-Half Blood t-shirt, which was weird because they were required to be worn during the day. Then I realized, it was Calypso.

Of course, she wouldn't be wearing a t-shirt, since she wasn't a half-blood. She was wearing her usual white chiton which, with everybody at camp being Greek, wouldn't have been strange, except for the fact that all the kids were American. She looked like someone had just plucked her off the page of a book of Greek myths.

She and Percy were talking, but I didn't really tune in to hear what about, because just then my eye caught something. Percy's hand.

And it was being held by, none other than, Calypso herself.

"Maybe this isn't a good time." I muttered.

I saw Percy start to turn his head around, but I waved my hand through the mist before he could see me.

* * *

I headed up to Olympus the next day, partly to give the Cyclopes workers the designs for Apollo's statue, and also because it gave me something to do. It was weird, how when Percy was here, he was always complaining about how I was always busy, and now look how free I was!

After dropping off my designs, I decided to go back home. Making small talk with tree nymphs (who is pretty much all they had on Olympus) isn't very easy, seeing as how they always find a way to direct the conversation towards pollution, and global warming, and how humans are terrible creatures, etc.  
I decided to send another Iris-message to Percy.

I had completely forgotten what had happened yesterday. Well, of course I hadn't forgotten, but I was trying my best to. Percy and Calypso were just friends. End of story.

They were probably just catching up. Hopefully, they wouldn't be catching up when I tried to talk to him this time.

For one of the few times in my life, I was wrong.

I put a piece of tape on the hose so I wouldn't have to hold it up while I was talking, and set it on the ground. Throwing a drachma into the mist, I prayed to the goddess Iris.

An image formed once again.

This one was in the Poseidon cabin. Percy was sitting on one of the bunk beds, his back to me, and having a conversation with someone, who, surprise surprise, happened to be Calypso.

I could have just announced my presence and gotten Calypso to leave, but that would be rude, so I decided to just leave again. I sighed and passed my hand through the mist.

* * *

Okay, I hadn't talked to that stupid Seaweed Brain in nearly 4 days .The sun was setting, so if I was going to try again, I'd better do it now. He'd better not be busy this time.

I taped the button underneath the hose nozzle after grabbing a golden drachma out of my purse, and proceeded to throw into the mist.

"You know the deal," I said irritably, and the image started to materialize in front of me.

It was at the beach again, and once again, Calypso was there too. Why did he keep spending so much time with her? Oh right, he was probably chosen to be her tour guide for the camp. But the tour only takes about a day...

I shook my head, and told myself to stop jumping to conclusions. I was a daughter of Athena, so naturally I was over analyzing the situation.

Anyway, Percy and Calypso were at the beach again, talking. This time, I actually tried to listen to what they were saying.

"It's beautiful," Calypso said, gazing at the waves as the sun set, causing the water to look like it was shimmering with colors.

"Yeah," Percy replied, also turning to look at the ocean. "But I've seen prettier things." He said almost wistfully. That made me angry.

Calypso smiled and rested her head on his shoulder.

I was boiling with rage at this moment, and for the second today, I waved my hand through the mist without saying anything. He so owed me 3 drachmas.

I sat down on my bed as a bunch of different Greek curses came to mind.

I wasn't over reacting. I hadn't talked to my boyfriend in 4 days, and he was sitting at our spot at the beach, with some girl, who, did I forget to mention, was in love with him?

Calypso was only visited at her island every couple of years in the old myths. And every time, after each hero left, she would be heartbroken for years until another one showed up. It's only been about 3 years, so obviously no other hero had shown up at her island. It only made sense that she still loved Percy, or why else would she come to visit him?

Even if there is nothing going on between Percy and Calypso, I still have every right to be mad. I mean, you don't just blow off your girlfriend for 4 days, so you can hang out with your ex, and get all cozy at you and your current girlfriend's special spot.

3 more days, Percy. You just wait, because in 3 more days, I'll be there to knock the seaweed out of your brain once and for all.

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	5. I am Screwed Again

_Well, I screwed it up real good, didn't I? - President Richard Nixon_

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"Could you stop that, Grover?"

Grover snickered and set down his reed pipes, shaking his head and muttering something about "crazy emotions."

"Really? 'Cuz the only emotion I feel right now is annoyance!"

"Calm down dude, I was just joking. But, seriously, what are you going to do?"

I shook my head miserably in response. Grover and I were sitting at the Camp-Half Blood beach, and despite being by the sea, I couldn't bring myself to calm down. I didn't know what to do, and Grover playing "To Late To 'Pologize" in my ear wasn't really helping.

It happened this morning at breakfast, and I had been sitting here wallowing in self-pity ever since.

_"Hey, Percy!" I heard Grover yell, coming over to my table. The Poseidon table was always empty, with me being the only person there, and I was grateful whenever Grover came to eat with me. Demi-gods weren't really supposed to go to tables other than their own godly parents's, but what with Grover being a satyr, that rule didn't really apply here.  
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_"What's up?" he asked, while plopping down to sit across from me. He never really ate anything during breakfast, after recently being forbidden to eat forks, spoons, or any such items in the dining pavilion, because he accidentally dropped a tin can into the fire where we usually gave offerings to the gods, and then saying "I'm sure they'll enjoy it!"._

_"Nothing much." I replied._

_"Same here. It's been so boring lately. Hey, have you heard from Annabeth lately?"_

_I shook my head. "Nope. I'm out of drachmas, so I haven't been able to call, and for some reason, she hasn't been calling either."_

_"Maybe she's out of drachmas too."_

_"Maybe. But I don't think so. She hung back in Manhattan to supervise the building of Olympus, so I'm sure she'd be able to get some drachmas from there when she goes up. But she's coming today anyway, so I'll finally get to see her."_

_Grover smirked. "You've just been going crazy without her haven't you?"_

_"I wouldn't say _crazy_."_

_"I think_ she's_ going crazy. She seemed pretty upset when I talked to her last time."_

_I leaned forward, my eyebrows knit together in concern. "Really? When was that?"_

_"Last week, on her birthday."_

_I froze. "Huh?"_

_Grover raised an eyebrow, looking confused. "I IM'ed her last Thursday, on her birthday. You do know it was her birthday, right?"_

_Craaaap._

And so, I've been sitting her since then, trying to figure out how I could've forgotten, why I was so stupid, and, most of all, what I was going to tell Annabeth.

"You don't think Annabeth will be too mad, do you?" I asked Grover.

"Nah, she's probably just going to beat the crap out of you."

"Thanks so much for those words of encouragement."

"No problem man. That's what I'm here for, right?" he said, and then picked up his reed pipes and started to play "Party in the USA."

I glared at him before shifting my gaze back to the ocean. The rippling waves usually sent strength through me, but at the moment nothing could cheer me up. I tried to think back at what I'd been doing over the course of the last week.

Let's see, first I introduced everybody to Calypso. Then I showed her around. Then I hung out with her. And thats's pretty much it.

I know what you must be thinking, but Calypso is just a friend, nothing more. I hadn't seen her for so long, so I was obligated to spend some time with her right? Not to mention that no one else would hang out with her for some reason. I'd heard Connor and Travis Stoll cracking jokes about her behind her back, but she really didn't seem to care. Even if she did, she didn't let it show. It was one of the things I admired about her.

"Why do you think that is?" I asked Grover, interrupting his annoying trilling.

"Hm?"

"Why do you think everyone's been making fun of Calypso, or avoiding her?"

He narrowed his eyes and set down his reed pipes. "I thought we were talking about Annabeth?"

"We were, but I've decided to cross that bridge when I come to it. Answer the question."

"Oh, I don't know Percy, maybe it has something to do with the fact that she's like a million years old?"

"She's not a million years old." I huffed angrily.

"Just about."

"Well, so are the gods, and no one makes fun of them."

"Yeah, probably because they'll get blasted to pieces if they do. Listen, you remember a couple of years ago when the Huntresses came to camp, and how everyone made fun of Zoe Nightshade? Well, Calypso is even older than her."

"I know, I know. It's just so hard to think of Calypso as _old_."

"Not for everyone else." Grover muttered under his breath.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing. Ah, speak of the Devil." He gestured behind me.

I turned around, and there stood Calypso, looking radiant in her traditional Greek chiton. She had refused on wearing on the Camp-Half Blood t-shirt, apparently because it was too "modern." She smiled at me.

I smiled back and got up. "See ya later, G-man."

He rolled his eyes. "Your captor awaits."

"What?"

"Never mind." He turned his back from me and resumed playing Miley Cyrus.

Captor? What was he talking about?

"Percy!" Calypso beamed as I reached her. "I have been so bored just sitting in my room all day, and that child of Hades,_ Nico_, tried to "entertain me" by summoning up a bunch of ghosts and scaring me half-to death. So I thought I would come to see you, if you didn't mind."

"Of course not!" I grinned. "So, what do you want to do?"

She shrugged.

We were sitting atop Half-Blood Hill, next to Thalia's pine tree. Calypso had a lot of stories about her life, considering she had never left the island of Ogygia.

"And then," she laughed, "Odysseus says 'We haven't any maidens such as yourself back in Athens. Well, there is Helen, but her beauty could only launch a thousand ships, yours could launch a hundred!' You would think that a great hero could at least learn his numbers, no?"

I burst out laughing.

"And then," she paused to catch her breath, "He grabs my arm like this," she grabbed my wrist and held it to her face. "And he...and he..." she stopped, her face inches from mine.

I stared into her chocolately brown eyes and felt myself leaning in, and then...

BANG!

Something heavy slammed into my back and I turned around to see a tall girl with curly blonde hair stalking past me after slamming me with her backpack. Unfortunately, I recognized her all too well.

"Annabeth!" I called after her, but she proceeded as if she hadn't heard me.

"Ah, the silent treatment." Someone said. I whipped around to see Nico, being the little creeper he is, leaning against the pine tree, a look of wicked amusement on his face, and pretending to wipe tears from his eyes. He stepped forward and patted me on the shoulder. "Good luck, man. You're going to need it."

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	6. I Ruin an Apology Again

_"Whatever spiteful fools may say, each jealous ranting yelper, no woman ever went astray, without a man to help her." - Abraham Lincoln_

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SHITSHITSHIT! GODSWHATADUMBASS!

Sorry, about that. Just had to get it out of my system. Wait...SHIT!

OK, I'm good now. Well, not _good_ as in, everything's okay, but good as in, I don't feel the need to swear loudly and get weird stares from tree nymphs anymore good.

So, good news, bad news. Good news is, Annabeth's not trying to bash my head open, or trying to blast my brains out by screaming at me as loud as she can. Bad news is, she's not talking to me, and for some reason, I would prefer her trying to bash my head open. Oh right, because she _can't _bash my head open. I'm invincible, remember_?_ And the silent treatment is driving me crazy.

I've drawn up a list of things I can do to apologize:

1. Be straight-forward. "Look, Annabeth. I'm sorry I forgot your birthday, and instead spent the whole week glued to Calypso, and forgot that you were going to be arriving yesterday and tried to kiss Calypso while you were walking by. Forgive me?" Yeah, that'll work.

2. Turn on the charm. "Hey, baby. Sorry about the little misunderstanding the other day. Make out with me?" Yeah, that's a fool-proof plan. For getting _killed_.

3. Beg for forgiveness.

So far, number 3 seemed like the best option, albeit the most embarrassing. Now, I just had to work up the nerve to look Annabeth in the eye.

And all of you out there secretly calling me a wuss, I'd like to see _you_ trying to make up with Annabeth when she's in angry girl mode. Yeah, I thought so.

It's time for lunch. I'm just going to stroll up to the dining pavilion, walking all badass-like, and apologize. Ready, set, GO.

* * *

Hmm...funny story. That plan didn't work.

I mean, I'm sure it would have, if I had seen it through. But I didn't.

I did stroll up to the dining-pavilion, trying my best to look badass and failing miserably, according to Grover atleast ("Dude, why the heck are you limping? Did Annabeth snap your legs?"). But after that, everything went downhill.

Because, as soon as I saw Annabeth, I chickened out.

So here I sit, at the lonely Poseidon table, vigorously stabbing my barbecue with a fork.

"Ah, there he is." Grover plopped down in front of me. Campers weren't allowed to sit at other tables, but Grover wasn't _technically_ a camper. "Got any idea what you're going to do?"

I shook my head miserably.

"Here's an idea. How about you apologize?"

I glared at him. "That's easier said than done."

Grover started chewing on his fork. "How so?"

"Well, first I have to get her to listen to me, then I have to, you know, actually_ apologize_."

Grover stared at me, then shook his head. "Humans..."

I stood up. "Fine. You know what? I'm going to apologize."

Grover smiled. "Well, don't let me stop you. Go ahead."

I sat back down. "Maybe later."

"That's what I thought."

* * *

I've been putting it aside for too long. I'm going for it. All I have to do is knock on her cabin door. Take a deep breath. OK.

I tentatively reached my arm out and knocked on the door. I squeezed my eyes shut as it slowly opened. Take another deep breath. It's going to be OK.

"Percy?" I opened my eyes to see...Malcolm.

Wow. Talk about anti-climactic.

"Uh, hey Malcolm," I said awkwardly, "Where's Annabeth?"

"At the arena."

"Oh. OK. Thanks. Bye."

"No problem...?" He shut the door.

Well. To the arena then.

As I started walking, trying to calm my nerves, I got interrupted by the last person I wanted to see right now. Nico.

"Hey, Perce. How's it going? You're not busy are you? Because I sort of needed to talk to you."

"What, Nico?" I asked impatiently.

"Um...well...how do you know if you're in love?"

Huh? "What...why do you ask?"

Nico fidgeted with his hair, cheeks flushing as he stared at his shoes. "Because I think I am."

"With who?" OK, so that probably wasn't the best thing to say, but I was still in shock. Nico, stoic little Nico, in love?

He looked up, his dark hair falling into his eyes, and didn't say anything. Wait...

"Oh, ew, no way man! Just get that thought out of your head. I...you...ewwww!"

"What? No! That's not...what...why would you even...YOU HAVE A SICK MIND!" Nico edged away from me, his eyes wide and terrified looking. "What the hell is wrong with you, dude? Why would I...be in love with you? ACK! You...never mind...just...I'll go ask Travis!" He ran towards the Hermes cabin, with his arms flailing and yelling "Percy's gay!" at the top of his lungs.

So much for calming my nerves. I hastened towards the dueling arena before Connor and/or Travis caught up with me. The last thing I needed right now was an interrogation about my sexuality.

Luckily, when I finally stumbled into the arena, I saw Annabeth standing there. Unluckily, she was talking to some _guy_.

Now, I'm not the jealous type, but this guy was totally checking her out. Guys can just tell when someone's checking a girl out, and this guy was pissing me off. His eyes were nearly bulging out of their sockets as he stared at Annabeth, who was chattering away, twirling a piece of her curly blonde hair with her finger.

They just stood there talking, smiling and _laughing_ for a while, as my blood heated up, simmered, and finally boiled over the top.

Finally, the guy said goodbye and left. I glared at his retreating figure, before turning back to look at Annabeth, who was sitting on a rock, still twirling her hair. I marched up to her.

"Annabeth!" She jerked upright at the sound of her name.

"Percy?" She looked surprised, but then her voice hardened. "What do _you_ want?"

"What were you doing?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Sitting."

"Before. Who was that guy?"

"Why do you care? It was a new camper. I've been showing him around. What's it to you?

"You think I don't care that my girlfriend's off flirting with some dude while I'm not around? Well, I do."

Annabeth looked outraged, and for a second I regretted saying anything. But hey, I had a right to. What did she think she was doing?

"Flirting?" she practically shrieked. "What, so I'm not allowed to talk to a guy now? Who are you, Athena? And even if I was flirting, why would you care?"

"Because you're my girlfriend!" I was shouting now, but I didn't care. She was seriously making me angry.

"Really? Could have fooled me! Because last time I checked, you're not supposed to leave your girlfriend to go make-out with someone else, but maybe that's just me!" She had been yelling too, and by now she was red in the face.

"I wasn't making out with anybody." I knew what she was talking about of course, and that was way out of line. Calypso was just a friend.

At this point, Annabeth was practically boiling with rage. She opened her mouth, but then shut it, turned on her heel and stomped off, leaving me standing with a bunch of headless training dummies.

This day will go down in the history books. The day the worst apology ever was delivered.

* * *

**Review. Please?**


	7. We Fight Again

_"If you can't save the relationship, at least save your pride." - Anonymous

* * *

_

I'm not a wussy, pushover girly-girl that cries at the slightest thing, but I'll admit, at that moment I felt like just breaking down and crying. Oh no, not because my boyfriend broke up with me or something. Quite the contrary, _I_ broke up with _him_.

For the past couple of days, I had been spending all my time ignoring him and doing my best to avoid him. So, I guess you could call what just happened an _official_ break-up.

Again, I'm not a girly-girl, and I'm not that type of girl who jumps to conclusions before hearing the full story. The sad thing is, after hearing the whole story, I was still forced to break up with Percy. Because he's a stupid _guy_. Idiot. Man-whore.

I think I just I split my pillow in half. Maybe stabbing it with a dagger wasn't the smartest thing to do. Hm.

Anyway, I've heard writing in a diary or something stupid like that is the best way to get your anger out. So, I'm just going to lament to you, the non-existent person in my head, why Percy is the stupidest, retard-est, betraying-est (and yes, I'm aware that the latter are not real words) person in the whole freaking world.

So, here goes:

_I was angry at Percy. Yeah, I know, big surprise there. But I was angrier than before, in fact, angrier than I had ever been at him. Because not only did he forget my birthday, but he also decided that instead of apologizing, he should make out with Calypso! Of course, he didn't actually make out with her, but who knows what they were going to do if I hadn't shown up?_

_Anyway, he also got all angry at me for absolutely no reason, when I was supposed to be the one angry at _him_. _  
_  
I hadn't talked to Percy in a good three days, and it wasn't my intention to talk to him any time soon. If he gave a crap about me, he would come and apologize. But of course, he's too much of a prick to get the memo._  
_  
At lunch today, I was very aware of Percy boring a hole in the back of my head with his stare, but I dutifully ignored him. And then Grover, the satyr match-maker himself, sat down in the seat in front of me at the Athena table._

_"Annabeth, how long is this going to go on? You and Percy just need to make out, I mean, make up already."_

_I blushed. "Tell him that."_

_"I already did." He sighed. "He's too scared of you to try and apologize. And would you really forgive him if he just said 'Hey, Annabeth, I'm sorry'?"_

_"If he meant it." I muttered._

_Grover rolled his eyes. "Yeah, like, I'm so sure. What do you want him to do, Annabeth? Give you flowers? Write you a romantic poem? Serenade you until you're forced to say yes in order to save your ability to hear?"_

_"Any option will work." I replied snidely. "Except, of course, the last one."_

_Grover sighed again. "Annabeth, cut the kid a break."_

_My eyes widened in disbelief. "What, so now _I_ should say sorry to _him_?" I nearly yelled in outrage._

_"That's not what I'm saying. Just, stop avoiding him like he's Nico on karaoke night."_

_I winced at the analogy, and Grover rolled his eyes and left the table._

_So, I did some thinking, and out of the kindness of my heart, decided that Percy the Seaweed Brain was too much of an idiot to just come right out and say sorry, so I should go and make conversation with him. Hopefully, he would get the hint and just freaking apologize._

_I went to the Poseidon cabin, only to find it empty, sans Tyson the cyclops. He was polishing some sort of shield, his one eyebrow furrowed in concentration._

_"Hey, Tyson," I said, entering the cabin._

_He looked up. "Anny-beth!"_

_"Hey," I smiled. "Do you know where Percy is?"_

_"He at the beach with strange girl." Tyson sounded disapproving. "He like spending time with her," he said knowingly._

_I swallowed. "Um, thanks."_

_I was faced with the decision to go back to my cabin, or to go find Percy. In the end, I decided finding Percy would be the best thing to do. I could just ask Calypso to leave. I mean, I did have that right, didn't I?_

_Unfortunately, upon reaching the beach, I found out that I could _not_ ask Calypso to leave. Because to do that, she would have to let go of Percy, and it looked like neither one of them wanted to let go of each other at that moment._

_Ten drachmas says you can guess what they were doing.  
_

_That's right._

_Making out. On the beach. _WITH_. _EACH. OTHER.

_I don't know what I would have done at that moment, had I been able to move any part of my body. But, seeing as I couldn't, I just stood there, rooted to the spot, unable to tear my eyes away from the scene in front of me._

_The two were glued together, going at it like they had never kissed anyone before. Percy's hands were on her back, and her's in his hair._

_Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the two broke apart, and I suddenly realized that I had gained control of my limbs again._

_I coughed, but the sound was carried away over the rush of the ocean, which, at the moment, was swirling out of control because of Percy's stupid boy hormones, and I'll admit, the massive waves _did_ look pretty epic._

_So, I summoned all my energy and coughed again, louder this time._

_Percy nearly jumped a foot in the air and snapped his head around looking for the noise. His eyes fell on me and grew wider, and man, did he look like a deer in headlights._

_"A-Annabeth." He stammered, struggling to get up, which was pretty hard since he and Calypso were so deeply entwined that it was hard to decipher whose arms from whose. Calypso's eyes widened as well as she saw me standing there with my arms crossed. She jumped up said "Um, I will speak with you later." And hurried off. Inside, I felt like chuckling at her choice of words. She sounded like a school teacher._

_"I can explain-" Percy began._

_"Save it." I cut him off, raising my hand. "Let me guess, she kissed you, not the other way around?"_

_"Um, yeah?" He looked sheepish._

_"Yeah, I would believe that, except, one, I'm not a complete idiot, and two, if you really didn't want to kiss her so bad, then why were you to sitting here sucking each other's faces off for the past three minutes?"_

_"Nothing happened Annabeth. I was talking to her about stuff, and, I don't know, we got caught in the moment!"_

_I felt like laughing. "'Caught in the moment?' Yeah, I bet. And what kind of 'stuff' were you talking about?"_

_"I was asking her how I should apologize to you, since _you_ obviously weren't going to help at all!" He nearly yelled the last part, and at the moment, my resolve seemed to snap._

_"Excuse me?" I yelled right back at him, trying not to shriek. "So this is my fault now? I'm not the one who's been flirting with other girls while his girlfriend is mad at him!" I was pretty sure that by now, I was red in the face, but I didn't care._

_"I wouldn't be _flirting_ with anybody if my girlfriend wasn't mad at me!"_

_"How the _hell_ does that make sense? Why don't you think about _why_ I'm mad at you, or are you too stupid to figure that out on your own?" OK, so maybe that was out of line, but really, he wasn't making any sense! "What is your problem anyway? In case you haven't realized, making out with other girls isn't the best way to apologize!"_

_"You want to know what my problem is? You are! I'm sick and tired of your always being angry with me. I'm sick and tired of you bagging on Calypso just because she's a better friend than you! I can't believe I ever dated a bitch like you!"_

_That stung, and totally wasn't true, and for a second I was speechless. Then, I found my voice again, and wasn't surprised at the venom I could hear in it. "You know what, Seaweed Brain? Think whatever you want! I don't give a damn! I've had enough! Just leave me the hell alone."_

_Percy hesitated for a second. "So are...are you breaking up with me?"_

_I laughed derisively. "Sure! I am breaking up with you! Happy now?"_

_He didn't take that quite as I had hoped for him to. "Yes, actually. I am happy, for the first time since I've started dating you!"_

_"Have it your way." I felt my eyes stinging and realized that they were tears. But I refused to let him see me cry, so I just stomped off towards my cabin._

So that was my day. How was yours?

Quite frankly, I'm tired of all this drama. Yes, Percy was a great friend to me, my best friend, and an even better boyfriend. But I wish that we could have just stayed friends, because that way all of this "cheating" crap wouldn't have shown up, and we could just be the same old Percy and Annabeth we used to be. You know, before Percy turned into a total douche.

I guess I do feel kind of better after venting my feelings. And, oh gods, I'm crying!

I hate Percy. I hate Calypso. I kind of hate myself too.

FML.

* * *

**Yes, I am deeply sorry for keeping you waiting for so whoop-de-freaking long. I hope you'll forgive me. Oh wait, you won't, because I just made Percy and Annabeth break up. Well, if you review, I could fix that. Maybe. Oh, and I am also deeply sorry for the amount of drama in this chapter. Unless you like that sort of thing. In that case, you should thank me!**

**I was looking at all the documents I've uploaded to my fanfic account and realized that I have quite the interesting labels for them. My label for this chapter is "Percy and Annabeth have a hissy fight." :)  
**


	8. I am Confused Again

_"Some times I'm confused by what I think is really obvious. But what I think is really obvious obviously isn't obvious..." - Michael Stipe_

* * *

If looks could kill I would have been dead a long time ago.

Grover keeps shooting me these murderous glances. I never thought satyrs could look so violent.

And he really has no reason to be angry at me. I broke up with Annabeth. Big deal. I'm a dude. Some guys break up with their girlfriends for absolutely no reason, and I had a reason. So, I wasn't the bad guy in this scenario. I should not be glared at like I'm Chris Brown or something.

"Yo," Grover said, sitting down next to me. Maybe he realized that I was unfazed by his homicidal glares and decided he had to verbally get the message to me. "I just have one thing to say to you. You're a retard."

"Am I?" I asked, trying to sound bored, "I hadn't realized. Don't let my momma know."

"Oh, so now you're going to be all cold with your best friend too, is that right?" Grover asked. "Well then, I guess Nico's my best bud now. The two of us are going to have some great times together. And the first thing we're going to do is send a couple ghosts into your bedroom. Sure you'll get a kick out of it."

"Well, have fun with that." I replied. "And may I ask why I'm a retard?"

"Besides the obvious? Let's see, you broke up with Annabeth. For _Calypso _of all people."

I stayed quiet.

"Hmm," Grover snorted. "I was expecting for you to deny it. And no," he added, catching the look on my face, "staying silent is not denying."

"What's wrong with Calypso?" I asked, getting angry. "Why do you guys hate her so much? Just because she's ten times better than Annabeth? I guess being perfect is a flaw nowadays."

"Perfect?" Grover all but snickered, "You think Calypso's perfect? Dude, newsflash. She's a slut. She falls in love with every guy that washes up on her island. And I guess most of them are sexually repressed like you were, because they usually end up taking the bait. Then, after a couple of weeks or so, they realize that they can't stay and they leave. And then some other dude shows up to take their place. But because your a stupid _hero_, you had to go and get her freed from her island and mess up the perfectly good balance. Idiot."

"Shut up!" I hissed at him. "None of that crap is true. She might 'fall in love' with all the heroes that have shown up, but nothing ever actually happened between them. She's a virgin goddess, dumbass."

This time, Grover actually burst out laughing. "Okay, time for a history lesson," he sputtered, trying to contain his laughter, "First of all, Calypso is not a goddess. She's the daughter of a _Titan_. And second, no way in Hades is she a virgin. Have you ever even read the _Odyssey_? Calypso imprisoned Odysseus on her island for like 6 years. What do you think they did for all that time? Play poker?"

"Whatever," I huffed angrily, "All I know is that Calypso is a nice girl and that she would never do anything like that."

"No, all you know is that Calypso has a nice _body_. How else did she get so many guys to do whatever she wanted? Anyways, have you ever heard of the word _apocalypse_?"

"Yeah," I said slowly, thrown aback by the sudden turn the conversation had took. "The end of the world, right? What of it?"

"Guess what Greek root it's derived from." And with that Grover stood up and left, leaving me more confused than ever.

* * *

The sun was shining. Birds were singing. There was a cool breeze running through the hot summer air. Everything was pretty much the opposite of my mood.

But the loyal sea reflected how I was feeling perfectly, as per usual. The waves were churning restlessly, and every now and then a huge tide would crash over the beach, drenching everyone on the shore. The Ares cabin looked like they wanted to murder me for soaking them in seawater. Oh well.

I couldn't stop thinking about what Grover had said, which, as I kept trying to remind myself, had been his intention. Stupid satyr.

That stuff couldn't be true, could it? Calypso was such a nice person, kind to everyone she met. How could what Grover had said been right then? Was she really a...slut?

No, no she wasn't. Of course she wasn't. Grover just said that stuff to me because he liked Annabeth better. And that was great for him, but I wasn't going to make life decisions only because Grover approved of them. I mean, Annabeth was his friend, so of course he would stick up for her.

_She was _your_ friend too_, a voice in the back of my mind said, _until you blew it_.

Well, if that was the kind of friend she was, then maybe it was a good thing that we weren't speaking anymore. Now, back to the Calypso problem.

"Perseus!"

Speak of the devil. Or in this case, angel.

"Calypso!" I smiled warmly as Calypso hurried over to me, her brown hair glinting in the sun.

"I have not seen you in the longest time, and I assumed you would be at the beach as you usually are when you are upset."

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Who said I was upset."

She sat down next to me, playing with a strand of her caramel-colored hair. "You see, I heard many people whispering about you and that girl, I can't remember her name."

"Annabeth?" I asked.

"Ah, yes. I heard campers whispering about the two of you, you seemed to have had an argument of some sort, so I suspected that you would be feeling upset."

I sighed, leaning back against a rock as I watched the waves swirl around. They seemed to have gotten much calmer as soon as Calypso arrived. She just seemed to have that kind of effect on me.

"Yeah. We got into a fight. And I broke up with her."

"So you are not...together, anymore?" Calypso's voice was sympathetic, but I heard something else underneath the sympathy. I couldn't quite place what it was.

"Nope." I replied, exhaling loudly.

"May...may I ask what the disagreement was about?" Calypso asked shyly.

"Nothing. Something really stupid."

"I see."

I turned back to the ocean. Poseidon really was the luckiest god. He got possession of the ocean, one of the most beautiful things in the world. We stayed like that for a while, just staring at the sea and not saying anything. But it wasn't uncomfortable or awkward at all, just...peaceful. Nothing was ever uncomfortable when Calypso was around.

"Calypso?" I asked tentatively. I didn't know how I was going to put this, but I just had to know.

"Yes, Perseus?" I always hated it when Annabeth had called me that, jokingly. But from Calypso's mouth it just sounded, better, somehow.

"Well, um, well...you know, back when you were still, uh, imprisoned? On, you know, your island? How many, uh, guys, um...washed up your shore?"

Her eyes tightened the tiniest bit. "I did not keep track." Her voice was confused, but I could hear the slight steel underlying in it.

"So...were most of them injured, like I was?"

"Some. Not all." Her face was hidden under her curtain of brown hair, so I couldn't see her expression.

"How long did they stay?"

"A while." She turned to face me again, and her expression was cold. "Why the curiosity, brave one?"

"Just...just wondering."

She nodded, turning back to the ocean, but I knew that she didn't believe me.

* * *

A day or two later, I still hadn't completely gotten over what Grover had told me. I hadn't questioned Calypso about it again, since she had seemed so unwilling to talk about it the first time. But I could understand why. It was an awkward topic, and it was all in the past. Like way, way, in the past. But still, history repeats itself.

I kept telling myself that Calypso wasn't that kind of girl. And whenever she was around me, the thought that she really was a...slut, seemed pretty much impossible. But when I was alone, left with nothing but my own thoughts, I kept thinking about what Grover had said.

I had seen Annabeth around camp a lot, but she refused to meet my eyes. I kind of missed her friendship, but then I remembered what a bitch she had been while we were dating and convinced myself that it was better this way.

Especially after I heard some interesting news from Connor and Travis.

"She's WHAT?" I all but shouted.

Travis raised an eyebrow at me while Connor snickered. "I said, she's going out with that new kid, Jared." Travis repeated slowly.

I ran a hand through my hair, feeling like someone had punched me in the gut. "Well, she works fast." I scoffed, trying to sound bored.

"Uh-huh," Travis replied, scrutinizing my face.

"How do you know?" I was failing miserably at being nonchalant.

This time, Connor answered. "I saw them kissing each other near the stables," he said, gauging my reaction.

"That's nice," I muttered, "We broke up, what two days ago, and she's already making out with other guys? What a whore."

Connor smirked, wagging his eyebrows, while Travis smiled at me knowingly.

"What?" I demanded.

They both shook their heads at the same time.

* * *

I knew what I was going to do. I knew when I was going to do it. If only I knew _how_, I was going to do it.

Nobody could be accusing me of being insensitive and all that crap, because Annabeth already had a new boyfriend, and nobody was calling _her_ a whore.

So now I just had to make my move. Epic.

I tried to pay attention to what Calypso was saying, but I was too worried that I was going to start sweating soon. Gods, I was so nervous.

"-miss Ogygia sometimes," Calypso was saying, "I love being free from my prison, but sometimes I miss the calm of the island. The stars shine so much brighter there. It's beautiful." Her voice was wistful.

"I know something more beautiful." I said. Smooth, I know.

Calypso turned to face with a look of surprise on her face. I noticed how close she was sitting to me on bunk bed, how her long brown hair fell over shoulder, and knew that now was the time to make my move.

Slowly, I leaned in closer, and, seeing Calypso close her eyes, I did the same, and pressed my mouth against hers.

It was heaven.

Her lips were so soft under mine. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before, ten times better than kissing Rachel, or even Annabeth. I wanted more the second my lips touched hers. I slid my arms around her waist, pulling her closer, and her arms went around my neck, hands sliding into my hair.

And just like that, we were making out. She was in my lap, and my arms were wrapped around her back, and it was incredible. I had never felt anything close to this when Annabeth and I used to do this.

And guess who decided to ruin this perfect moment? That's right. Grover.

"Hey Perc-" He stopped short as he laid eyes on Calypso and I, locked together on the bed.

"Um, bad timing?" He asked meekly. "Uh, Percy, Chiron told e to give you message."

Calypso and I had managed to unscramble ourselves while we he was talking. "Yeah?"

"Um, it's private," he nodded towards Calypso.

She scrambled up and hurried out the door, tossing out a quick "goodbye."

"Pedophile," Grover muttered as she closed the door.

"What?" I asked indignantly.

"Nothing. So," Grover leaned against the door, all awkwardness gone from his voice, "You work fast, eh Percy?"

"Shut up," I snapped, blushing. "In case you haven't heard the news, Annabeth's got a new boyfriend. Why don't you go bug _her_ about it?"

He smirked. "Because I agree with her. But," he raised a hand as I furiously opened my mouth, "I'm not here to talk about your dating life. I was told to tell all the campers that there's supposed to be some sort of 'friendly gathering' next week."

"Friendly gathering?" I repeated.

"Chiron's version of a party. You know, the annual 'first week of camp' party?"

"Oh yeah," I said, feeling dumb. "Wait, why'd you have to tell me that in private?"

"Because I dislike your little 'girlfriend'," he said the word with contempt, like_ girlfriend_ was the worst word he could think of. "I suppose you'll be taking her to the party, excuse me, _friendly gathering_?"

I blushed again. "Well, yeah. Probably." I added, unsure if she would agree or not.

"Well then," Grover's smirk became more pronounced as he opened the door to leave, "Have fun. Don't let her rape you."

And with that he closed the door, leaving me completely dumbfounded.

* * *

**Long time no see, eh? No, I'm not Canadian, I just enjoy using the work "eh." Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I also hope I don't get too many death threats. Maybe just a smidgen. Cause what's life without a couple of angry fangirls (or guys, I won't judge you) threatening to kill you? Nothing, that's what. Anyway, R&R. Please?**

**Also, I'm very upset with an incident that happened on FanFiction recently. I reviewed on a story by the user by the name of "Limeless One Without Limes." Her story was one of those things where the author writes about conversations they think could happen between themselves and the characters. THOSE ARE NOT ALLOWED IN FANFICTION. I told her this, and advised her to remove it, and she retaliated by sending me a very harsh PM stating that I was "mean and stuck-up and should just shut up," and that she had the right to write whatever she wanted.**

**I was in such a good mood because I finished my new chapter, and she just ruined it.**

**If any of you guys read Maximum Ride fanfictions, I would advise you not to read hers. **


	9. I Move On Again

_Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving. - Albert Einstein

* * *

_

Guess what? Go on, guess. Fine, I'll tell you.

I was over Percy.

So, okay, I cried after we broke up, even though _I_ was the one to break up with _him_. Doesn't every girl cry after she breaks up with her boyfriend or vice versa?

But I got over it. The plain and simple truth? Percy's a douche bag. There, I said it. I'd seen him and Calypso kissing at least twice, and they were full on making out with each other the second time. Well, I made it easy for him. He wanted to go out with Calypso, I broke up with him. The playing field is clear ahead of him.

And on top of cheating on me, he had the gall to get angry at me for _talking_ to another guy. Not making out with said guy like he was doing (well, he was kissing Calypso, not the guy...you know what I mean), just talking to him. I mean, really? And then he goes and calls me a bitch for like, no reason at all. Well, I was done with it. I'd had it up to here with Percy, so I ended it.

And I'm much happier.

Sure, my blood still boils when I see him and Calypso hanging around Camp together, but that's just because he cheated on me with her. I'm still at liberty to be angry about it right? And I had a boyfriend now. That guy Jared, the one Percy got all pissy about? He asked me out, and I said yes. He was a nice guy, and I have to say, I liked him. I'll admit, when me and Percy first hooked up, the feeling was...better, than it is with Jared, but it's still much better than when Percy was being such a bastard about the whole Calypso thing. So it evens out.

And guess who had to show up to mess everything in my deluded mind up? Thalia.

The Hunters showed up exactly when lunch started, whether from sheer coincidence or planning, I didn't know. There were about 20 girls, all wearing the same silver hoodies, and all of them glowing with the kind of radiance all Huntresses had. Thalia stood at the front of the line, her spiky black hair and threatening demeanor looking oddly extrinsic in her silvery Hunter get-up.

"Heroes!" Chiron called over the crowd, in an attempt to quieten the campers. Funny thing too, it actually worked. I suppose since Camp was now mostly comprised of new campers, who had never seen the Hunters before. "The Hunters of Artemis will be...briefly staying at Camp-Half Blood this summer while the goddess is...er, away. I hope you make them feel welcome."

I heard Connor Stoll from the Hermes table whisper loudly "Sure, if they don't spear us first." Which, naturally, garnered giggles from all the younger campers.

Thalia nodded, and the Hunters traipsed off towards Cabin 8. She turned towards me before leaving though, and shot me a meaningful look which clearly said "Get your butt down over as soon as lunch is over!" Yeah, we just have a special bond like that.

So, I headed over to Cabin 8, Artemis's reverential cabin, right after lunch. The Huntresses were, at first, reluctant to let me in, but obliged immediately when I told them that I was a friend of Thalia's.

"Wow," I said to her as I sat down next to her on her bed. "You've got quite the club here. Everyone seems to admire you."

"I'm just cool like that," she replied setting her quiver of arrows down. "Is it just me, or has the dining pavilion gotten smaller since I was last here?"

"It's just you. Probably because the Camp's population has like, doubled in size since last summer."

"Hmm..." was her reply as she leaned back on the headboard of the bed. "It's good to be back." she sighed contentedly, closing her eyes. "So Annabeth, what's new? How's things going with you and ol' Seaweed Brain? Where is he?"

"Hell if I care," I muttered.

Thalia opened one of her eyes. "Ooh, is there trouble with the lovebirds? Get into a fight?"

"Nope. We broke up." I said shortly.

This time Thalia's eyes seemed to pop out of their sockets. "Really?" she smirked, a look of wicked amusement on her face. "Well, can't really say anything against it, being a Huntress and all. Kudos to you, realizing boys aren't worth it all on your own." She held her fist out, presumably for me to punch it, but I didn't.

"Yeah...and...I got a new boyfriend."

"Whoa, hold the train! When did you and Prissy break up?"

I rolled my eyes at the "prissy" comment. "Around a week ago."

"And when'd you get a new boyfriend?"

"Around a week ago."

Thalia let out a whistle. "Damn Annabeth, you work fast."

"Oh, come on!" I protested, "We _officially_ broke up like a week ago. I've been 'break-up angry' with him for like, a month. I'd had enough of Percy for a while. When a cute guy asked me out, I said yes."

Thalia smirked again. "'Break up angry'?" she quoted, "Nice. Can I ask what the fight was about?"

I let out a breath. "Calypso."

"Come again?"

"Long story."

"I've got time."

* * *

"I see." Thalia said finally.

"Do you Thalia? Do you really?"

Thalia rolled her eyes. "So, what up with this Calypso chick? She butt ugly, or just sexually repressed?"

I groaned and shook my head. "No to the first one, and I don't know about the latter."

Thalia laughed. "Oh wait, I've heard of her! She's in the _Odyssey_."

"Wow. You figured it out all by yourself."

She blushed. "Shut up. Wait! Damn, isn't she like a billion years old?"

"Something like that."

"Pedophile."

I snorted. "Can we please talk about something else?"

"Maybe," Thalia sighed dramatically, "Whatever shall we talk about?"

"I don't know. You tell me. How's life, where've the Hunters traveled to lately, seen any particularly fascinating stuff, and oh yeah! where's Artemis?"

"That's a lot of questions."

"I've got time. You can start with the last one."

Thalia's face clouded, and she got a strange closed expression on it, like, whoa! this is dangerous territory! "Lady Artemis," she said carefully, "Is away...on important business."

I rolled my eyes. "You sound like a secretary. If I'm not allowed to know, just say so. I won't press the matter."

Her face relaxed. "You rock Annabeth."

I grinned. "I know. So, are you going to answer my other questions or not?"

"All in good time."

* * *

So, the most interesting thing happened to me a day or two later.

Before I tell you, I'm going to have to give you some background information.

So, Calypso. To tell you the truth, I really don't know much about her. I had made her up to be a mean and nasty person in my imagination, but that was really only because she stole my boyfriend. I mean, I've read the Odyssey (is there any demigod that hasn't?), and she's not mentioned much in there. All it says is that she "imprisoned" Odysseus on her island for like, seven years, and...they did some stuff.

So, if you translate that into modern-day lingo, she was somewhat of an ancient hooker.

So, I really wouldn't want to be friends with a hooker, but who knows, that was a kajillion years ago, right?

Wrong.

Of course, Calypso was at a place where the average inhabitant's age was like, what 14? so, I guess she kind of toned down her...inappropriateness.

Anyway, it was just a regular day, the sun was shining and all that crap. Thalia and I were down by the dueling arena, trying to hack each other's limbs off in a totally friendly way. Unknown to me, you gained a lot more strength when you became a Hunter, so Thalia was pretty much beating the crap out of me.

We were training for an hour, maybe more, and you'll probably get bored if I tell you all the details, so I'll just skip to the end.

Thalia jabbed at me with her sword...again, and I fell...again. She was immortal now, she had an unfair advantage!

Anyway, when I fell, I was happy to realize that something had cushioned my fall. I was _unhappy_ to realize that this something was a person. Calypso to be exact.

"Ah!" she cried as I fell on her.

"Oh, sorry!" I jumped to my feet nervously and reached down a hand to help her. She didn't take it.

"Ah, it is you," she said in her sing-song voice, getting back up much more gracefully than I had. "Pardon me, I have seemed to have forgotten your name. What was it...?"

"Annabeth," I supplied.

"Ah yes, Annabeth. Is it common for you to fall on people?"

"No. We were training," I gestured to Thalia, who was watching Calypso nervously, "And well, you were kinda standing in harm's way."

Calypso seemed to not have heard. "Yes well, I would love to stay and talk, but I have to go now."

"No one's stopping you," I said irritably.

She raised an eyebrow. "You don't have a very pleasant attitude do you? Maybe this is why Perseus decided to leave you."

"Excuse me?"

"A little hard of hearing I see," she smirked, like she was enjoying the homicidal vibes I was sending out, "Well, as long as we are here, I might as well tell you that Perseus and I are going to the camp, what is it called? Oh yes, _party_ together."

"That's nice," I said sweetly, "But I could really care less. Now could you move? You're kind of in my way."

"I see you don't take the news kindly. What's wrong? Can you not stand the idea of someone else in Perseus's arms? Somebody else kissing him?"

"No, I just feel sorry for the poor soul who has to kiss _you_." Thalia went "oooh" behind me, and I shot her a "not right now" glare.

That wiped the smirk off her face. "Thalia Grace," she said, turning to face Thalia. "I was good friends with the Grace Thalia. Unfortunately, you seem to be nothing like her." ***See author's note.**

Thalia stuck her tongue out at Calypso, and she turned back to me. "Most males would have taken advantage of their, er..._girlfriends_, yes, if they had been together as long as you two had," she sneered, "I suppose you were not worth it. Maybe he'll have more luck with me." With that, she turned on her heel and left.

"Daaaamn," Thalia said as soon as she left. "Talk about bitchy. And what was up with her voice? It's like Justin Bieber on helium."

That managed to make me laugh, but I was still tense. "What did she mean 'take advantage of'?"

Thalia shook her head. "Annabeth, sweet, naive little Annabeth. What do you think it meant?"

"I don't know."

She sighed. "You're such a goody two-shoes. OK, put your mind in the gutter for a second."

"But that's where yours lives."

She glared at me. "Ignoring that. Just do it."

OK, my mind's in the gutter... "I still don't know."

"You're hopeless," Thalia groaned. "Fine I'll just tell you. She meant, you know, gotten laid..."

"Oh! I get it now! Ugh, is that all she's thinking about?" I wrinkled my nose in disgust.

"Told you she was a pedophile."

* * *

Jared and I were sitting on the bench in front of the stables, just enjoying the calm. It was so peaceful here, what with the pond so nearby. Percy and I used to come here all the time. I had to admit, I sort of missed him. Like, there was no doubt that he was a bastard, but I missed those times I'd had with him back before all this Calypso nonsense came up. We had some good memories here at camp.

"Annabeth?" Jared passed a hand in front of my face, jolting me out of my reverie. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just zoned out for a second," I replied apologetically. "What were you saying?"

"I was saying," he started, running a hand through his hair, "There's a 'friendly gathering'," I laughed as he mimed quotation marks on the words, "coming up. So, I was wondering. Uh...We should...go together?" He bit his lip nervously. Man, he looked cute when he did that.

"Sure." I smiled reassuringly. "I'd like that."

"Cool." He sounded relieved.

"How long did it take you to swallow down the nerves?" I asked teasingly. "Been practicing what you were going to say in front of the mirror?"

"Maybe a little."

"Dork."

"Why are you dating a dork Annabeth?"

"I took pity on you."

Jared leaned in closer. "Really?"

"Yup."

"Sure it's not the other way around?"

I rolled my eyes, leaning in just like him. "You wish."

And just like that we were kissing. Kissing Jared was so much more different than kissing Percy, and not really in a good way. But I suppose that's just because Percy was my first love. It'll take a while to get over him.

We were interrupted by an angry cough behind us. We broke apart to see...Percy. Of course.

His face was red, and his eyes looked murderous. "You're kind of in my way." He gestured to the stable door.

"C'mon," I muttered to Jared, and stalked away, towards the pond.

"Uh...um..." he started muttering once he caught up with me, probably thinking of something to say to break the awkwardness.

I just shook my head, cutting him off. "Forget it."

* * *

**AAAH! This chapter was 7 pages long! You guys better be thanking me! (You can thank me with reviews. Please?)**

***So, I'm a Greek Mythology nerd, so I happen to know where Rick Riordan came up with Thalia's name from. One of the three Graces's name was Thalia. I just felt I had to incorporate that in somewhere.**


	10. My Girlfriend Hates Me Again

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians**

**

* * *

**_ I drink to stay warm...and to kill selected memories. - Conner Oberst_

* * *

Something was going on. I had a feeling in my bones that something big was about to happen, but I just couldn't put my finger on what.

Because why else would the Hunters suddenly show up at Camp? It's not like it was really common for them to just pop in every now and then. No, something was up, and I didn't have a good feeling about it.

Unfortunately, the only time I had talked to Thalia since she'd been here, I hadn't really had a chance to ask her. She was too busy reprimanding me. About? Annabeth, of course.

"So," she started. She had came over to join me at the Poseidon table during lunch, because people just loved bothering me while I was eating. "What's this I hear about you and Annabeth?"

"I don't know, why don't you tell me?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Well, Prissy, I heard that you two broke up."

"You heard right."

"May I ask why? Annabeth won't give me any real details."

I rolled my eyes. "You're getting a kick out of this, aren't you? We broke up because we wanted to. Simple as that."

Thalia sighed dramatically. "What, there was no slapping, murders, fighting or anything of that sort involved at all? I was expecting something juicier."

"Sorry to disappoint."

"So, you're going out with the incarnate of Chip and Dale now, correct?"

"If you mean Calypso, then, yes, that's correct."

"So, one question? Did you get bonked in the head or something?"

"Huh?"

"Well, whatever happened to you that you received such extensive brain damage to your already too small cranium? Because I don't see any other rational explanation for dating a pedoph-"

"Shut up! Just because Annabeth's your friend doesn't mean you have to diss Calypso! You don't even know her."

Thalia just smirked. "Touchy, are we? And by the way, I do know her. I would say you could do better, but truth be told you can't. The only sane girl who ever wanted to date you, for reasons unknown, was Annabeth, but since you've blown that I guess Snow White over there is the best you can do."

I gritted my teeth, trying to bite back my anger. "Can we please talk about something else?"

"Can we?"

"Why are the Hunters here?" It was obvious Thalia wasn't going to drop that conversation, so I decided to just change the topic.

"Wow, 'the Hunters'. Nice job excluding me. I'm part of the Hunters you know. Anyway, if you must know, Lady Artemis is busy with some...business, so we have to chill here until she gets back."

"What kind of business?"

"None of your business." And with that, she walked away.

Sometimes it feels like having a conversation with Thalia is equivalent to getting punched in the face.

* * *

Summer was the best time of the year. No school, no work, just Camp-Half Blood, in all its glory. Getting to hack dummies into pieces, hanging out with friends and just chilling all day. Even the estival heat had something to offer, which was the excuse to hang around the beach all day.

But this summer was turning out to be the worst I'd ever had. You know, if you exclude a year or two ago when I battled Kronos and half my friends died.

Anyway, this summer was turning out to be terrible because I had no friends to hang out with. Grover wasn't talking to me because of the whole Calypso thing. Thalia's ire wasn't just playful and friendly anymore. Connor and Travis had been pranking the Hunters non-stop ever since they came. And Nico was sulking ten times more than usual, and just stayed locked up in his cabin all day, for Hades knows why. And I'm not even going to mention Annabeth.

The only upside of this summer was that I was getting to hang with Calypso for the first time since...ever.

She was awesome. I don't why everyone else hated her so much, because she was the nicest, sweetest person I had ever met. She never had a bad word to say about anyone, never argued with me, which was the opposite of what Annabeth used to do, and was turning out to be the best girlfriend I'd ever had. Then again, I'd only had one.

Tonight was the "friendly gathering" that the whole camp had been buzzing about, and I was going with Calypso as my date. Annabeth was going with that prick Jared, and Grover with Juniper. The Hunters were all coming too, even though they were all probably going to sit in a corner the whole time.

Maybe I'd finally start having some fun.

* * *

"As you all know, there is going to be a friendly gathering tonight-"

"Come on Chiron!" Travis Stoll interrupted the centaur, "Just call it a party!"

All the heads of the cabins were gathered in the rec room, which was like our informal meeting area. Katie Gardner, Jake Mason, Nico, Will Solace, Selena Wilde (the new Aphrodite leader), Annabeth and a bunch of other cabin leaders were all sitting around the ping-pong table. Grover was also there, being the informal leader of the satyrs. Both Travis and Connor Stoll were there, because they seemed to never separate from each other.

Chiron sighed heavily. "Mr.D does not approve of parties."

"Are you kidding me?" Connor exclaimed. "He's the god of partying!"

"Yes, but while he is on probation, he's not allowed to...ehem, fulfill his godly duties. Therefore, parties are not allowed in Camp-Half Blood."

The Stolls snickered, muttering "sucker" under their breath, but let the topic drop.

"As I was saying, there is a friendly gathering tonight." Chiron threw a pointed look at the Stolls who were watching him with feigned interest. "And while the wood nymphs will take care of setting everything up, certain campers," this time Chiron jerked his head towards Grover, "Have reminded us that it is unfair to make the nymphs do all the work. So, the heads of houses will be on cleaning duty."

Immediately, a chorus of protests started.

"Hey, unfair!" Shouted Jake Mason.

"Thanks a lot Grover!" Josh Gibson, head of the Iris cabin, exclaimed.

"I can't go around cleaning in party heels!" Selena Wilde complained.

"I'm not even going!" Yelled Nico.

"Enough!" Chiron boomed. "You are all on clean-up committe and that is final. You'll do it without complaining, or I'll ask the harpies to help you clean, and I'm sure nobody wants that."

He was smart. Nobody said a word after that.

* * *

I was waiting for Calypso near the dining pavilion. Pretty much everyone else had already arrived. Katie Gardner and Travis Stoll were there together, which totally threw me off. Like, when did that happen? I guess I had just been out of it for a few days.

Annabeth and Jerky Jared had just gotten here a while ago, and right now they were dancing and drinking punch and all that jazz. Annabeth looked beautiful, just like usual, and I'll admit, my heart started beating a bit faster when I saw her. Too bad her personality wasn't as pretty as she was.

And then Calypso came, and my heart seemed to stop altogether, right then and there..

She was wearing a real dress (white like always) and not a chiton like she usually did. Her long brown hair wasn't braided like it normally was either, but open and flowing down her back. She was the most gorgeous thing I had ever seen.

She smiled, and my world seemed to light up. "Hello Perseus." She looked embarassed.

"Hey," I said, trying to tear my eyes away from her. "You look beautiful."

She blushed, which only added to her beauty. "Thank you. Shall we go?"

"Oh, uh, yeah." I slipped my arm into hers and walked towards the pavilion.

I won't bore you with all the details, but I got to say, it was really fun. Calypso and I danced and laughed and the whole night went on in a blur, like a surreal dream. Everytime Calypso's body touched mine a jolt seemed to go throughout me. It was great.

"You want to go back to my cabin?" I asked Calypso a little while later. It was so loud that we could barely hear anything, and Annabeth and Jared making out in the corner was really spoiling my mood. I mean, I didn't like her anymore, but really, is that all she did now? Make out with her new boyfriend, or was she just trying to make me jealous or something?

"Yes," Calypso answered, taking my hand in hers.

We could still hear the sounds of the party as we approached my cabin, but not so loudly that we couldn't hear each other speak. A lot of people had left the gathering already, and the pavilion was still emptying as we walked.

I closed the door as we both stepped in, and then, I just don't know what happened. As soon as the door closed and I saw Calypso sitting there on my bed, something just came over me. I walked right up to her and kissed her, full on mouth, and she kissed back just as passionately. Her arms went around my neck, and I put my hands on her back, pulling her closer.

And the next thing I knew, we were both sprawled across the bed, kissing like we had never kissed before. Calypso was on top of me, her legs wrapped around me, my shirt was on the floor, and there was a throbbing in my pants. Calypso was really the best kisser in the world.

I knew we had to stop, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I just wanted to get closer and closer to Calypso, so close that you couldn't tell whose arms from whose.

"Calypso," I grunted, reluctantly breaking away. "We have to...stop."

"We don't have to do anything, Perseus." Just listening to her say my name sent shivers through my body, and I knew that if I didn't stop right now then it would be too late.

"Seriously, we can't...go any further."

"We can do whatever we want Perseus. I love you." She ran her hands over my chest and I shivered, and the sound of her voice, lust-filled and seductive, the feel of her on me, the wild look in her eyes was just too much for me.

I feebly attempted to push her off of me, but she had an iron grip around the back of my neck. She leaned in even closer and whispered in my ear, "I want you Perseus. Badly." Her warm breath lingered on my ear, and when she brought her mouth back to mine, I didn't attempt to stop again.

So, someone else decided to stop it for me. Who? Why, Annabeth of course.

There was a knock on the door and then it swung open, revealing Annabeth.

"Percy, we have to go to clean up and...oh."

Calypso and I quickly broke apart, and I whipped up into a sitting position.

Calypso was giving Annabeth, who was blushing furiously, the evil eye as she started talking. "Um, Chiron says we have to go clean up. He told me to tell all the cabin leaders." She hurried out the door before I could reply.

"Uh," I started awkwardly. "I, um have to go."

"Yes, yes." Calypso waved a hand irritably. "Annabeth is waiting for you." She ground out mockingly. And then she got up and stalked off.

I suppose I'm doomed to a failed love life. I guess Aphrodite just hates me.

* * *

**DON'T kill me. If you do, I'll never be able to finish the story and bring Percabeth back together. Ha, got you there. Oh, and I know Will Solace isn't the Apollo cabin leader, but Michael Yew died in TLO, and since Will was the only other Apollo camper mentioned, I appointed him as leader. Congrats to him. And oh yeah, this story is rated T, so only teens should be reading. Just sayin'.**

**Anyway, R&R. Please? We're almost to two hundred! Thank you all, by the way.**


	11. Nothing Makes Sense Again

_In the theater of confusion, knowing the location of the exits is what counts. - Mason Cooley_

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* * *

_

I woke up the next day at around 12 o'clock. Great. I had missed breakfast, and was late to lunch. Of course, nobody in my lazy cabin bothered to wake me up.

But I doubt that I was the only head of cabin that had woken up late today. We'd all been up past midnight cleaning up the remnants of the "gathering", since all the campers were big slobs who couldn't clean up after themselves. It had been pretty annoying when the cleaning harpies had dropped by, not to help, but to cackle as they watched us cleaning up. It was pretty much the perfect way to ruin a great night.

You know what else ruin's a great night? Seeing your ex-boyfriend making out with the girl he dumped you for. And maybe this is just me, but it looked like the least of what they were planning to do was kissing.

I had been thinking a lot about what Calypso had said to me at the dueling arena the other day. Could it be possible that Percy only broke up with me because I didn't...let him get to third base? I mean, he never mentioned anything like that, and he didn't seem like that type of guy either. But I guess he knew me too much to think that I would do that. It wasn't really a secret that all Athena campers were prudes.

So is that really the only reason Percy broke up with me? Of course, Calypso wouldn't be providing any trouble for him, that much I knew.

I shouldn't be thinking about Percy. He was a bastard, and now I have a nice, caring boyfriend ten times better than him. But it still hurts that that's the only reason we're not together anymore. I just thought we were, you know, better than that.

Percy had turned out to be a bigger bastard than I had ever expected. As is cheating on me and then having the nerve to accuse and _dump _me wasn't enough, he had the gall to go around telling everyone I was a bitch. I had heard him talking to Travis and Connor Stoll just the other day;

_"So Percy," Travis had said to him at the party. "I hear Annabeth and her new boyfriend are getting along pretty well."_

_"Do I care?" Percy had replied, taking a sip of his punch._

_"Don't you?" asked Connor, a wicked glint in his eye. "Are you jeaaa-lous?"_

_"Why would I be?" Percy had replied calmly, totally unaware that I was in hearing range. "She was a whore. To hell with her."_

I can't even put into words how much that had infuriated me. But I had forgotten that I was at Camp-Half Blood, where I was friends with pretty much everyone at the head of the gossip mill, as in, the senior campers of Aphrodite cabin. When I had asked them about it, Selena Wilde had snorted and told me "Honey, we're not stupid. We all know that the chances of you being a whore are as good as Clarisse winning best-dressed award."

That had reassured me. But I still couldn't fathom how I could have misread Percy's character and made him out to be such a nice guy.

"Annabeth? ANNABETH!"

I jumped up, startled by the loud banging at the door.

"It's open!" I called out groggily, rubbing the rheum out of my eyes.

"Annabeth!" The door opened, revealing Grover, his face red and chest heaving. "All heads of cabins have to get to the Big House, immediately." He panted.

I jumped out of bed. "What happened?"

"I don't know. But Chiron looked really shaken when he asked me to call everyone. I think it's something big."

* * *

Thalia knew something I didn't, that much was clear. She was sweating, nervously rubbing her hands together, and jumping every time a camper walked in. She was hiding something all right.

All the assembled campers seemed to have the same expression on, which I supposed I was wearing too. They all seemed wary, wondering what on Earth was going on. The presence of Rachel Dare, the new Oracle, wasn't really helping to ease anyone's worry. It was doing the opposite in fact. You could practically hear everyone's brains whirring, trying to figure out why Chiron would call the Oracle in for the meeting. There could only be one reason, and it wasn't very pleasant.

I was infuriated to see that Calypso was here, seated next to Percy. I suppose she _was_ a camper now, but all the heads of cabins seemed to be giving her just as wide a berth as Rachel, like she was diseased or something. I'll admit, I was kind of pleased by that. She seemed pretty pissed though, whether it was because she had to join in the meeting or she had had a fight with Percy, I didn't know. But _oh wait_, she couldn't be mad at Percy! They probably already had plans for tonight! I shook my head, my nose wrinkling in disgust.

"Campers." Chiron seemed calm, sitting in his wheelchair all relaxed as he gazed at everyone. But I knew him well enough to see the worry in his eyes. "We have a situation. I think a quest is in order."

There was a stunned silence as everyone realized that their worry was not misplaced, but the triumph wasn't very satisfying. The last quest anyone had been on was 2 years ago during the Titan War, and most of the veteran campers, which all the heads of cabin were, would agree that a quest now was just too soon.

"But, what happened?" Katie Gardner stared at Chiron with fearful eyes.

"A camper is missing." Chiron took a big breath, looking older and more tired than ever. "Nico diAngelo."

My head snapped around, looking around the room just like everyone else. Sure enough, Nico was nowhere to be found. I heard an intake of breath next to me and looked over to see Thalia shaking her head. "Shit, shit shit."

"Thalia." She raised her head, hearing her name. Chiron was staring at her determinedly. "What do you know about this?"

Thalia gulped. "It's not my place to tell you."

"As Lieutenant of the Hunters of Artemis, I think it is. And, for argument's sake, even if it was not your place to tell me, as director of this camp, it_ is_ my place to know what is going on when one of my pupils goes missing."

Thalia said nothing for a while, just staring at the table as we all waited with bated breath.

"Lady...Lady Artemis," she said finally,"has been away looking for a...monster. One that came from the Underworld. At first, the gods thought that Hades had set it loose, just to mess with them. But after Hades gave his solemn oath on the Styx saying that he had nothing to do with it, the gods could think of only one other suspect. Nico."

"What monster?" I asked.

Thalia took a deep breath. "The Teumessian fox."

I nearly gasped. "That's impossible! He was cast into the stars!"

"Uh, what are you talking about?" Of course, clueless, idiotic Percy would ask.

"The Teumessian fox was a monster that 'could never be caught.' The gods had assigned a hero named Amphitryon to capture it, and for that he used a monster that could never fail at its job, the dog Laelaps. Zeus was stuck, not knowing whether to make the fox win or Laelaps, so he just cast both beasts into the stars."

"Where they're supposed to live for all eternity." Travis Stoll said slowly.

"Suppose to being the operative word," Thalia sighed. "They escaped."

"How do you escape from the sky?" Josh Gibson asked, confused.

"With magic." I whispered.

"Exactly. Hecate used magic to bring the monsters back to the Earth, to use as her own, but Hades had stopped her from exploiting them. He had brought them back to the Underworld with him to be imprisoned in Tartarus. Someone set them free." Thalia's voice shrunk to a whisper. "And the only possible suspect is Nico."

There was silence for a moment as we all digested that. Why would Nico want to free the fox? There's nothing that he could gain from it.

"We need a quest." Chiron said dejectedly. "I find it fitting for Thalia to lead the quest, as she knows more about this than anyone else."

Thalia nodded.

"Come on," Rachel sighed, getting out of her chair. "Let's head up." She started towards the attic.

"Why can't we just do it here?" Thalia asked.

Connor Stoll snorted. "That's what she said." He whispered to his brother, who immediately broke into silent giggles. I rolled my eyes. Even in such a tense situation, they found a way to make a joke out of something.

"Because." Rachel replied, "It's an ancient rule. The prophecy can only be given in the company of the leader of the quest." Rolling her eyes as if to say "duh," she opened the trapdoor in the ceiling and climbed the ladder up to the attic.

"It's an ancient rule." Thalia mimicked, following her.

* * *

Thalia came back a few minutes later, a look of complete anger on her face.

"Yes?" Chiron looked tense.

"Yes what?" She snapped at him. "There's no prophecy."

"What?" Chiron exclaimed. "How can that be?"

"Ask_ her_." Thalia jerked her thumb towards Rachel, who had a weary expression on her face, and came to regain her seat next to me.

"Rachel." Chiron began, "What is this?"

"It is what is." Rachel said simply. "There's no prophecy. We were up there forever. Thalia asked a bunch of questions, and nothing happened. Maybe this just isn't as big a deal as everyone thinks it is."

There was silence for a moment. Then—

"But how can that be?" Percy asked, repeating Chiron's words. "A camper's missing, there's a whole complicated backstory to it. _Something's_ going on."

Rachel shrugged. "I can't tell you anything. Mayb—" She stopped short, her spine straightening abruptly.

"Wha—" Percy began, stopping as Rachel's eyes began to glow green and she started to speak in the raspy voice of the Oracle.

"_The answer is clear, k__nown to all.  
__Of many a hero, pride will be the downfall.  
__With anger clouding the mind, answers will be hard to find.  
__A traitor lies unseen, hidden, and can only be defeated by his worst foe.  
__Peace can only be restored when all realize he must go."_

There was a good chunk of silence after that little bombshell. I found my face warming with guilt as I thought about the second line. Pride, or more accurately, hubris, was my fatal flaw. But the prophecy couldn't possibly have anything to do with me. I'd done my share during the Titan War, hadn't I?

The silence was finally broken by Clarisse. "Not another traitor." She whispered as Chris Rodriguez put his arm around her reassuringly. I thought back to Silena Beauregard, who had turned out to be a spy for Luke so long ago. I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts.

"But wait," Will Solace look confused, "Who does the quest go to?"

Everybody's eyes went to Rachel, who's eyes still glowed green. When she spoke though, it was with her regular voice. "There is no quest. Just a prophecy." She stated. "No one will need to leave camp. The solution will come out by itself, eventually." And with that her eyes stopped glowing and she collapsed into her chair.

"At least we know it's a boy," Percy noted. "_by _his_ worst foe."_

"That doesn't mean it's a boy," I argued exasperatedly, resisting the urge to call him a retard. "_His_ just means any member of mankind." _Which means it's definitely not you, because you have the brain of a monkey._

"Well," Chiron stated, his demeanor calm once again. "I suppose we will all just have to wait. Class dismissed." He smiled ruefully.

Rather than being disappointed, mostly everyone, including me, was relieved that there wasn't going to be a quest. It sounded like the answer to this conundrum could only be found by using logic to deduce the solution. My specialty.

Now to go get some lunch.

* * *

**Author's Note:  
**_Sorry for the slow update. I do apologize. I also apologize for the confusion, but all will be revealed in good time. Also sorry for making the cool emo-man Nico disappear. But never fear, he will back!_ _And remember, the only way to tell me exactly how much you hate me right now, in excruciating detail, is in a **review**!_

_The next update won't be for a while. I'm working on the next chapters, but I'm going on a trip and won't have internet till next week. And I mean a FULL 7 days! Sorry!_


	12. A Prophecy Annoys Me Again

_"Restlessness is discontent, and discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man, and I will show you a failure." - Thomas Edison

* * *

_

I was screwed over.

I hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in days. Rachel's prophecy kept reverberating in my head, and that on top Calypso being angry at me made it nearly impossible to get to sleep.

I didn't even understand what I did wrong. Me and Calypso are in my room, Annabeth comes in for official camp business, and Calypso goes berserk on me. I felt my face heat up as I recalled the events of the earlier night.

I'd heard from friends at school (okay, I didn't really have any friends, but guys who use the school bathrooms at the same time as me count, right?) that it took a while in a relationship to... you know. But, the other night, Calypso had seemed more than willing to...you know. And I didn't really know how I felt about that. Annabeth and I never really thought about anything like that.

Fortunately, I didn't really have any time to ponder that, because I was too worried about Nico. Being the one who first brought him to camp, I still felt sort of responsible for him, and a good rule of thumb is to not let the kid you're responsible for run away from home. On top of that, I felt guilty for not listening to him last week when he came to me for advice. Who knew if I'd ever see him again?

So, I was pretty much miserable.

Oh wait, I forgot the best part. My best friend Grover wasn't talking to me either, so instead of discussing matters with him, I just had to sit here in my cabin all day discussing Rachel's prophecy with Bob, the imaginary voice in my head.

If I didn't take action soon, I was going to go insane. Or rather, more insane than I already am.

I got up, smoothed my hair down and walked out of my cabin, and felt happier than I had in days, with a purpose.

"Percy!" Connor Stoll shouted as he run up to me, his brother not far behind.

"What?" I snapped. "I'm kind of busy here, in case you didn't notice."

Connor raised his eyebrow. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"I'm listening." I said impatiently.

"Not here," Travis panted, catching up. "It's not safe." He exchanged a dark look with his brother and beckoned his head forward.

* * *

"So what's up?" I asked, actually curious now. We were sitting at the top of Half-Blood Hill, which was virtually deserted except for Grover, who was watching the property line in case any new half-bloods showed up. He was studiously ignoring me, having waved at both Connor and Travis and not even given me a passing glance. So that was how it was going to be.

"Nico." Connor said simply.

I leaned forward eagerly. "What? You know something?"

"Not exactly," he explained. "We know something that might be related to him disappearing, but it might also be totally unrelated."

"What?" I urged.

"He likes someone," Travis began. "And he's been pretty moody about it for days. That's the reason he hadn't been coming out of his cabin, you know."

A fresh wave of guilt washed over me. I hadn't been paying any attention to Nico at all the last couple of days. "But why would he just disappear because of that? I know Nico, he wouldn't just leave the camp because some girl doesn't like him."

"That's why I said it might have something to do with it," Connor agreed. "But you can't be sure. He got all tongue-tied around her and didn't stop staring into space until like 20 minutes after she had left, like he was in a trance or something. He's been pretty..." Connor giggled, "smitten."

I nearly snorted. "Are we talking about the same Nico?"

"Yup." Travis sighed.

A thought struck me. "Is it someone from the Aphrodite or Hecate cabin? Because they might be using magic. That's pretty much the only explanation I can think of that would make Nico so..." I rolled my eyes, "smitten."

"Yeah, magic's what we've been thinking too." Connor mumbled.

"So who is it?" I asked.

Travis and Connor looked at each other. "Calypso."

There was a silence.

"Huh?" was pretty much the only word I could say at that moment.

"Nico liked Calypso," Travis spoke slowly, as though he was explaining algebra to a 3-year old.

"Loved," Connor corrected. "He said he was apparently "in love" with her." He snorted.

"But...but..."

"Of course, the probability of Nico leaving camp just because Calypso didn't like him is pretty slim." Connor acknowledged.

"Unless he's under a spell," Travis countered slowly, gauging my reaction.

"Why would he be under a spell?" Anger immediately cleared my mind. "If Calypso doesn't like him, why would she put a spell on him? Why would she put a spell on him period?"

"Calm down man," Travis suggested. "We know she's your girlfriend and all, but we can't rule anyone out just yet. We gotta solve this mystery if we want Nico back. You do want Nico back, don't you?"

"Of course I do!" I exclaimed incredulously.

"Well if he's not at camp anymore the spell wouldn't work on him, would it?" Connor voiced, on his own train of thought.

"I dunno," Travis agreed, "We better ask Annabeth. She knows everything," he added seriously.

"Nu-uh!" Connor cried, "We gotta go get supplies for—" he broke off, glancing at me. "Never mind. But we're busy today."

"I guess it's up to you." Travis put a hand on my shoulder. "Do us proud son." And he and Connor walked away, giggling.

"Wait!" I called after them. "Why'd you say that it wasn't safe to discuss this before?"

Travis grinned. "It sounded badass."

* * *

This was a joke. It had to be. Connor and Travis were probably sitting in their cabin, laughing their butts off. Meanwhile, I was sitting here worried to death.

How the hell was I supposed to ask Annabeth if a spell Calypso put on Nico would hold? Just the whole situation was embarrassing, and I still refused to believe that Calypso would ever do something like that.

But I owed it to the Stolls, and to Nico, so I would just have to suck it up.

* * *

I knocked on the door of Athena cabin, nearly shaking with anxiety.

Malcolm, who seemed to be the doorman of Cabin Six, opened the entryway. His eyes widened slightly as he saw me, and his mouth turned into a frown. "What are you doing here?"

"I want to talk to Annabeth," I mumbled.

He raised an eyebrow. "Really. Haven't you said enough?"

"Look Malcolm, what happened between Annabeth and me is none of your business. Anyway, it's over now. Forgive and forget."

He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. What do you need Annabeth for anyway?" He asked suspiciously.

"I need to ask her something."

"What?"

"Could you please just call Annabeth?" I asked impatiently.

"Whatever." Malcolm repeated and, scowling, went back into the cain, closing the door behind him. A few seconds later, Annabeth showed up, a weary expression on her face.

"What do you want?" She slid the door shut behind her.

"I gotta ask you something." My nerves shot up tenfold. This was the first time I had been alone with Annabeth since the breakup. You could practically cut the awkwardness in the air with a knife.

"I haven't got all day," she complained, "Get on with it."

I cleared my throat. "Connor and Travis had this idea. They think Nico might be under a spell."

Annabeth's eyes lit up, the way they always did when she got excited. "A spell? I thought we had established that he was kidnapped or something of that sort."

"Well, the Stolls say he'd been angry about something for a couple of days about something, and that somebody could have used magic on him."

"Angry about what?"

"Something," I grunted, and her eyebrows got higher. "The point is, he might have a spell on him. If someone from camp put it on him, would it hold now that he's out of the camp barriers?"

Annabeth leaned her head back on the wall of the cabin, thinking. I noticed that her hair was wet, presumably from a shower. The water made it seem longer and darker, and her bangs were completely covering her clear grey eyes.

"Well," she began, startling me out of my reverie, "it depends. If whoever cast the spell had access to really powerful magic, then it would hold even far away from the camp. But if we're talking about minor magic, like, a kid from Hecate cabin trying out a spell, then it probably wouldn't be that strong. What kind of magic do you guys have in mind?"

"Love magic?" The way I said it, it sounded more like a question than a statement.

Annabeth's eyes darkened, and she got that calculating look on her face. "Who do you think did this?"

Ha. Like I would tell her of all people that Calypso was the accused. "Somebody," I said firmly.

She smirked. "Fine, don't tell me." Her eyebrows came together, and she started pacing. "But if you think 'somebody'" she made quotation marks in the air with her fingers, "used love magic on him, then it's possible that she still might be meeting him. That way, even if the charm's not all that powerful, it'll still be sustained because they'll be meeting regularly enough for her to re-cast it."

She paused for a second, letting that sink in. "But why would she do that? What's there to gain?" I asked desperately.

"Well, if you told me just who it is we're talking about, maybe I could figure that out too." Annabeth reproached.

"I told you, somebody."

She heaved an annoyed sigh. "Whatever. Anyway, if they're not meeting, then this person has access to powerful magic. I'm talking god like magic. And if it really is love magic in use, then the only person who could be doing this is Aphrodi-OW!"

The last part was because at that moment, she tripped over a very large rock that had appeared out of nowhere, and fell right ontop of me. Drake Cyrus of Hecate cabin and some Aphrodite girl walked by, laughing.

"No good, lousy magic," Annabeth was grumbling, struggling to get off of me. She looked up at me, as if just realizing how close she was to me. "Uh..." She swallowed.

We were way too close. I could see every freckle on her blush-heated face, and could smell her usual lemon shampoo on her hair.

And then with a great heave, she put her hand on my chest and anchored herself off of me.

"Bye," she muttered, dashing into her cabin.

I ran a hand through my hair. _What just happened?

* * *

_

**I'm sorry about the recent shenanigans. I revised the first 3 chapters, and while I was re-uploading I sorta messed up and had to delete all the chapters and re-upload. So sorry if any of you guys thought I had deleted the chapters!**

**I've noticed less people have been reviewing, and some people have taken this story off their favorites. Is it because I've broken up Percabeth? This is in the Romance/Drama genre, so there's going to be drama as well as romance! Seeing this made me kinda sad, because I thought people liked my story enough to keep reading it wherever it went.**

**Anyway, remember to review. That is, unless you think that the story doesn't deserve your reviews :(**


	13. I Feel Accomplished Again

_The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing. - Socrates

* * *

_

I looked down at my notebook and shook my head. This was impossible. I would have thrown it across the room, had I not remembered that there was a bunch of sleeping Athena campers in here.

Stupid Percy had to come and tell me this right before bed. There was no way that I was going to be able to get to sleep now. And who could it be? I had narrowed down all the possible suspects and there was still a bunch of people who could be it.

The traitor could be anyone from the Hecate cabin, and luckily there were only 3 daughters of Hecate at camp. Unfortunately, it could also be anyone from Aphrodite cabin, and there were tons of Aphrodite girls, for obvious reasons.

I didn't think there was anyone else who could be listed as a suspect. They'd have to have access to magic, and the two goddesses wouldn't grant that access to just anybody.

Look's like my insomnia's back.

* * *

"Thalia!" I called, strolling into the Artemis cabin. Thalia, being the scary, bossy Lieutenant of the Hunters, had yelled at all of them to get out of the cabin so that we could talk, even though I had assured her it wasn't necessary. But who could argue with Thalia?

She nodded her head at me to show her acknowledgement. "Annabeth. What be uppeth?"

I rolled my eyes. "Just some prophecy related news." Thalia perked up, her eyes coming alight. "Percy came to talk to me last night. He said Travis and Connor reckon Nico's under a spell."

She wagged her eyebrows suggestively. "Percy came to 'talk' to you? In your cabin?"

I blushed. "Shut up Thalia. But anyway, they think that somebody put a love spell on Nico."

"A love spell?" Thalia giggled, "Yeah, Nico ran away from camp because he's in love. How does that even make sense?"

"Apparently Nico's been angry about 'something'," I made air quotes around the word, "And 'somebody' put a spell on him for 'some' reason."

Thalia raised an eyebrow. "So, Percy's not telling you something."

"Exactly."

She heaved a great sigh, falling backwards onto her pillow, and put her arms over her eyes. "Where did all this Nico-prophecy business come from anyway? Don't the Fates realize us demigods can only deal with one problem at a time?"

"Wait," I asked, confused, "What's the other problem?"

Thalia got into a sitting position and fixed an exasperated gaze at me. "You and Percy and Calypso. Duh."

I felt my face flush in anger, startled at the turn the conversation had taken. "Listen Thalia. There is no 'me, Percy and Calypso' thing going on. I have a boyfriend, in case you didn't notice. A nice, caring boyfriend who's _not Percy_."

But Thalia just rolled her eyes. "Come on Annabeth. It's obvious you're not over him."

I buried my face in my hands. "Ugh," I groaned, "How am I supposed to convince you, the stubbornest pig-head of all the stubborn pig-heads?"

"That's offensive," Thalia lilted in a lofty voice.

"I don't like Percy."

As per usual, she ignored me. "Maybe the Fates are trying to tell us something. Perhaps the answer to this little conundrum will also solve your love crisis."

"I _do not _have a lov—"

"I got it!" Thalia's eyes lit up as she stared at me excitedly. "I got it, Annabeth. This person that put a love spell on Nico. It's Calypso!"

"What?" I asked uncomprehendingly.

"The person who put a love spell on Nico! It's Calypso! It wouldn't be hard to get her to manipulate Aphrodite to give her love magic, they've known each other since forever."

I let that sink in for a second. "That could be true," I started slowly, "It would explain why Percy wasn't telling me who it was."

"Exactly! And after Calypso's revealed as the evil bitch she is, Percy'll dump her and get back together with you!"

"Oh my gods Thalia!" I shouted. She just wasn't going to give this up, was she? "I don't like Percy! I don't hate him, I don't love him. I have no feelings for him whatsoever!"

Thalia shook her head. "Denial," she muttered.

"Okay, let's say for arguments's sake that I do still like Percy," my mind rebelled against the words, "What would that even matter? He's going out with Calypso. I'm going out with Jared. Oh yeah, I forgot the most important thing._ He's a total ass._"

"And yet you still like him."

"No I don't Thalia!" I nearly shrieked with frustration. Why was she not getting this? "Percy cheated on me, I dumped him. We've been over for a while, and I intend to keep it that way."

"Come on Annabeth," there was something in Thalia's voice that I couldn't quite place. She seemed intent on making me believe her. "You know that's not true. It might have its faults, but you can't give up on love."

"You did." I snapped.

There was a silence as I realized what I had just said.

"Thalia, I didn't mea—"

"Get out." She said in a low voice, her eyes closed.

"No. Thalia I didn—"

"Get out!"

I obliged.

* * *

I walked about the camp grounds, a million different things buzzing about in my mind.

Hurting Thalia was the last thing that I was trying to do. And every time I thought back on it, I felt even worse about myself.

Thalia was a strong-willed, hard-headed person. There was hardly a thing in the world you could say to her to make her react that way. Except for Luke.

He was still a sensitive subject for her. And I didn't blame her for it either. In all his idiocy, Luke still loved Thalia on the inside. And technically, what happened wasn't really his fault. He believed what he was doing was right. And he had good reason to feel that way. But Thalia had never forgiven him, and had just kept all her emotions bottled up inside of her. Every time he was mentioned her reaction was the same.

Even though I regretted saying those words to her, they were still true. Who was she to tell me not to give up on love? I had a completely legtitimate reason for breaking it off with Percy. She had one with Luke, but his mistake was the type that you could forgive.

"Watch where you are going!" A shrill voice cried out, jolting me out of my reverie. I realized that I had just walked into the last person I wanted to see right now. Calypso.

"Sorry." I walked past her.

"What is wrong? Is the depression of not being able to see Percy too much for you?"

"Shut up," I mumbled.

"What did you say?" Gods, this chick went looking for a fight everywhere she went, didn't she?

I turned around. "I said, shut up." Thalia's assumption about Calypso sprang to my mind, and I fixed a glare at her.

"Watch your tongue," she spat. "I know that you are still bitter for what happened between you and Perseus, but there is no need for things to get nasty." She smirked, her eyes twinkling.

"Things got nasty when you walked in the room." Okay, so we were outside, but the effect of the phrase was still the same.

"My my, are we not jealous? But Annabeth, is it really my fault if Perseus preferred a real woman? Someone not afraid to...fulfill his needs?"

I wrinkled my nose in disgust, but that snarky comment hurt nevertheless. "Well I hope you two are happy together. You make a perfect couple." I turned around, beginning to walk away. "Bitch and bastard."

"Annabeth!" A male voice, all too familiar, called from behind me. I turned around, only to see that Percy had joined the party. Great. Just what I needed right now, to hear Percy's stupid voice arguing with me.

"Yes?" I asked innocently. It couldn't be possible that out of our entire conversation, Percy had only heard my last couple of words.

"What is your problem?" he said angrily, coming to stand next to Calypso, who was now sporting a delicately hurt look. "Why do you have to be nasty everywhere you go? Calypso wasn't bothering you, what's the point of calling her names?"

Okay, so it_ was _possible. The injustice of that made me want to shriek with fury, but I knew better than to argue with that Seaweed Brain. I smiled, tilting my head. "It amuses me."

"Well, find someone else to be a bitch towards."

"Sorry, that's your girlfriend's job," I said coldly, turning around for the 3rd time today. I turned my head back for one last comment, my fury with Percy and my anger at Calypso for being a traitor comingling. "And Percy, if I were you, I'd decide where your loyalties lie. Franternizing with enemies of the camp doesn't exactly make you look too good." Percy's face paled and I walked away, feeling satisfied for the first time in weeks.

* * *

There was only one way to find out for sure what was going on. Walking towards the edge of the beach, I saw a rainbow form in the sky. This was my chance.

After a fishing a drachma out of my pocket, I tossed it into the sky, where it mixed into the rainbow, making it sparkle even more than before.

"O Iris, accept my offering. Lady Aphrodite, Olympus."

Nothing happened. Dejected, I turned back towards the Camp, when a voice behind me said, "You called?"

My heart caught in my throat, and I turned around to see Aphrodite, beautiful as ever, standing on the white sand.

"Lady Aphrodite," I breathed. "I needed to ask you something."

She waved a hand, her long, polished fingernails glinting in the sun. "Ask away. You know I haven't got time to stand around answering to half-bloods, but you're a special case." She winked an eyeshadow covered eye.

"Have you been giving anyone at this camp access to love magic?" Okay, so subtlety wasn't my forte.

Aphrodite laughed, her voice echoing like wind chimes across the beach, and reached over to pat my nose. "I knew you were a clever one. Look who you're the daughter of after all, my cunning sister. But alas, yes, I have been giving magic to that wretched daughter of a Titan."

"Why?" I asked angrily, "Why would you do that?"

Aphrodite shrugged. "I owe her. You know that I'm married to Hephaestus? And that I have a thing going on with Ares?"

"Yes, yes," I said irritably. Everybody knew that.

"Well, I've been...involved with another god lately as well."

My eyebrows came together. "Who?"

She sighed dramatically. "Apollo, who else? What with his divine looks, charming sense of humor, perfec—"

"Yes, I get it, he's handsome. Moving on."

Aphrodite raised an eyebrow at me. "Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the cheap Camp bunk-bed this morning. Anyway, Hephaestus didn't give a damn about me and Ares. Well, he did, but that was _so_ two centuries ago. He's over it now. But if he's finds out about Apollo, he'll be...how do you kids say it these days? Pissed. He'll be pissed. And so will Ares. And you know him, always looking for an excuse to start a war.

"Anyway, Calypso, that wretch, found out about all this from Hermes, who tells her absolutely _everything_ about what goes on in Olympus. So, naturally, she blackmailed me."

"In return for her not telling, you had to give her love magic." I said slowly.

"Exactly."

"But why would she use it on Nico?"

Aphrodite shrugged again. "Eh, Hades if I know." And with that, she began to glow, and I shielded my eyes as she vanished.

* * *

**Hello people! I'm uberly sorry I haven't updated in so long! I had to finish up (start) my summer homework, get some volunteer hours done, get my school supplies, and I'd been neglecting this story. I am sooo sorry!**

**If you forgive me, say so in a review. If you don't forgive...say so in a review!**


	14. I Forget Again

_Chaos is like gravity. All it needs is a little push. - The Joker

* * *

_

I've been sitting locked up in my cabin all day. Now it's nearly 11:30, and I'm nowhere near falling asleep. Why? Because I just saw the most disturbing thing ever.

...

Let me rephrase. Not disturbing like "your-mom-in-the-bathtub-disturbing" but more like "OMG-I-can't-believe-I-just-saw-that-disturbing." I just said OMG. I'm going insane.

Anyway, I just saw something completely mind-blowing. Annabeth. Talking to Aphrodite.

This normally wouldn't be anything unusual, but what with the recent goings-on, it was very unusual. Why would Annabeth be talking to the goddess of love, who was probably giving magic to an unknown demigod (who might be Calypso)?

Okay, I need to take a deep breath and calm down. The traitor can't be Annabeth. She might have her faults, but she would never betray the camp like that. It was one of the reasons I used to love her so much.

...I never said that.

"Perseus?" There was a knock at my door, thankfully interrupting me from my disturbing (a lot of things in my life can be described as "disturbing") thoughts.

"Come in," I called wearily.

The door opened and Calypso slipped into the cabin, looking as beautiful as ever.

"What is wrong?" she asked, her eyes wider than usual as she looked at me.

"Nothing," I mumbled, shaking the hair out of my eyes. Talking about Annabeth to Calypso was the last thing I wanted to do.

"Are you worried for your friend, the son of Hades?" she asked kindly.

"Yeah, I am. Uh, Connor and Travis Stoll, you know sons of Hermes?" I started out tentatively. Calypso nodded. "They, well, have this theory that Nico might be under the influence of love magic."

Calypso's mouth opened for a second, but then closed so fast that I was sure I must have imagined it. "Why would they think that?"

I shrugged, looking away. "I don't know," I said slowly. "But they seem pretty sure that Lady Aphrodite is giving someone in the camp access to magic."

"Do you know any person who would do such a thing?" she sounded so innocent, so oblivious. There was no way she could be the traitor.

"Nope." I stated carefully.

"Perseus," Calypso reached over to put a hand on my shoulder. "You can tell me anything. You do not have to hide anything."

When she touched me, I realized what she was saying was true. There was nothing to hide from her. "I saw Annabeth talking to Aphrodite." I blurted out.

Whoa. That was definitely not what I wanted to say.

Calypso's face was downcast. "So you believe that Annabeth has betrayed the camp?"

"No, no," I said quickly. "I don't think that at all!"

Her eyes hardened, and she took one my hands in hers. Again, her soothing touch cleared my mind, calming down my hectic, ADHD brain. "Then who do you think it is?"

"Annabeth." I stated. It suddenly all made sense. I couldn't believe I had for one second thought that Calypso was the culprit. It was obviously Annabeth. She had never done anything right. "You're right Calypso. It has to be Annabeth."

"I'm sorry," her hand slid up my arm, "She was a friend of yours, wasn't she?" Her voice sounded forcibly calm, border-line accusatory.

"No, no she wasn't!" The only thing I could think about was how terrible Annabeth was for doing something like this to the camp.

Looking at Calypso, I realized just how different she was from Annabeth. She was always there for me, whereas Annabeth never did anything but...she just wasn't nice. There were no redeeming qualities about her at all.

Come to think of it, I couldn't think of any bad qualities about her either. I couldn't think of anything at all really.

But none of that mattered, because the next second, Calypso pressed her lips to mine and I forgot everything.

Who I was, where I was, what I was doing. Everything.

And that made it kind of hard to stop what I was doing.

* * *

**Sorry it's so short! Trust me, it's better this way ;)**


	15. I Am Stabbed in the Back Again

_"Desperation is the raw material of drastic change. Only those who can leave behind everything they ever believed in can hope to escape." - William S. Burroughs

* * *

_

"We need to talk."

Percy looked up from his barbecue, and his face hardened when he saw who it was. "I don't want to talk about anything with_ you_."

I paused, momentarily taken aback. Percy and I had been far from friends ever since what happened, but the tone of his voice implied something more. Like he...hated me.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What's your problem?"

"_You_," he emphasized, fixing and icy glare on me.

My face hardened. "Whatever, I could really care less," I attempted to sound indifferent, whereas in reality my brain was dying to find out what was going on. "I have to talk to you about Calypso."

"What do you care about Calypso?"

I sighed, hoping I wouldn't get too angry. "She's the traitor." I said bluntly.

His eyes widened so big that they nearly popped out of their sockets. But his immediate look of surprise quickly transformed into an incredulous expression. "_Excuse me_?"

"Calypso is a traitor," I said slowly and clearly, as if talking to a kindergärtner, which Percy wasn't that far from.

"I can't believe you!" Percy all but yelled. "How dare you...you have the nerve to..." he shook his head, as if he couldn't fathom that his little girlfriend had it in for our camp.

That got my blood boiling. I didn't care how much he loved (eurgh) Calypso. Did he really think I would lie about something like this? "Calypso is the traitor." I seethed, "I know for sure, and—"

"Shut up!" My eyes widened at the anger in his voice, "How dare you! Blaming Calypso for all this when it's _your_ fault!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" I sputtered. "I'm not the one who made Nico leave the camp. I'm not the one who's been using love magic on him! It's been your precious Calypso all along!"

"Look, you might be able to fool everybody else, but I'm not stupid."

"Could have fooled me." I spat out. What the hell was he talking about, _my_ fault?

"Look, I know it's you who made Nico leave! I saw you talking to Aphrodite!"

"Yeah, asking her who she was giving love magic to, you dumbass! Why the hell would I want to make Nico leave? Why would I use love magi...for the love of Zeus, he's like my frickin' little brother! How could you even think that?" I breathed heavily, trying to calm myself down. We were sitting in the middle of the dining pavilion, and the last thing I wanted to do was to make a scene.

This seemed to give Percy pause. A puzzled expression played onto his face, but before he could say anything, Calypso stepped up behind him, putting a hand on his shoulder. I got a weird sick feeling seeing her touch Percy.

"Speak of the devil," I muttered.

"Perseus," she began in her sugary-sweet voice, "What is wrong?"

I glanced at Percy, and saw that he no longer look confused. In fact, it was like his face had been wiped of all emotion.

When he spoke, it sounded odd and forced. "Annabeth here," there was no mistaking the fury in his voice. "Seems to think that you are the one who caused this whole Nico fiasco."

Calypso eyes widened, making her look politely surprised. "Me? What use do I have with the son of Hades?"

"You tell me." I said, giving her a look of pure hatred. Her face fell, and she looked saddened, but I could see the amused twinkle in her eyes.

"Whatever." Percy stood up, glaring at me like I was Kronos. "But I'll just say it right now. There's no way in Hades that you'll get away with this." And with that he walked away, leaving me gaping at him, too outraged to speak.

"Annabeth," Calypso mused, "How could you blame me for this when it's clearly your doing?"

"Shut up, bitch," A daughter of Athena would never jump into a fight like this, but I was outraged beyond outraged. "What do you have against Nico? Why are you doing this?"

"It does not concern you."

"You can't keep Percy fooled for long," I said. "Sooner or later, he'll figure out the truth. You're not more important than the camp to him."

"Really? Because he seemed to think I was very important to him the other night."

"Stop speaking in riddles!" I screeched. "Look, you cheap whore, whatever the hell you're trying to do, you won't get away with it. I won't let you, and trust me, when I put my mind to something, I make sure that I follow it through." I turned, starting to walk away.

"You wish for me to stop speaking in riddles?" Calypso called from behind me. "Fine. As you wish. Perseus made love to me last night."

I stopped, frozen in my tracks.

"That seems to have gotten your attention, eh?" I couldn't see her, but I could hear the smirk in her voice. "He loves me. I mean the world to him. He said so many things to me last night about how I 'make him feel alive.' I could give you examples if you would like." I heard walk away.

I just stood there, Calypso's footsteps receding into the background. Eyes burning, hot, salty tears running down my face.

* * *

"What's wrong Annabeth?" I had never seen Thalia looking so concerned in her life. For some reason, that just made me cry harder. "Did Jared say something to you?"

Jared. I didn't even want to think about him right now.

"Annabeth, tell me, or I'll go crazy!"

I looked up at Thalia, my lip quivering, and spilled my heart out to her.

* * *

I felt terrible for what I was about to do. Walking along the edge of the pond, I decided right there and then that I hated my life. With a passion. With a burning passion.

But there was nothing else to it. I couldn't just keep leading him on like this. If the news about Percy and Calypso affected me so much, then it could only mean one thing. I wasn't over him. And no matter how much those words made me want to jump over the fence and drown myself, they were true, and a daughter of Athena wasn't good at this denial thing.

"Annabeth?" I turned around. Jared was walking over to me, his hands in his pockets and a smile on his face. "What's up?"

I took a deep breath, hating myself. "Jared. I think we should break up."

His eyes tightened the tiniest bit. "Funny. But seriously, what's up?"

I swallowed, my eyes starting to prick. "I think we should break up," I repeated. "Jared, I'm sorry, but I just can't do this anymore. I...you're a nice guy Jared. It might sound really stupid, but it's not you, it's me. I just...don't like you in the way I thought I did."

The smile wiped off his face and his eyebrows furrowed. "What's wrong Annabeth? Why are you saying this?"

"I don't want to go out with you anymore," I whispered, "You can find someone better than me."

Jared reached forward, taking my hands in his. I didn't stop him. I couldn't. I was numb to the touch. "I don't want anyone else." He said it with so much feeling, that I could feel the tears in my eyes about to brim over.

I closed my eyes, letting them fall. He reached his hands out and started to wipe them away, but I stopped him.

"I love you Annabeth. It can't be over."

I tried to swallow, but found that I couldn't. It felt like my mouth was full of cotton. "It never started."

Jared realized that he was fighting a losing battle. Face resigned, filled with sadness, he turned around.

"Can we still be friends?" I said hopelessly, my voice quivering.

He turned his head back, eyes full of pain. "I think we both know the answer to that."

And he left, leaving me there to cry more than I ever had in my whole life.


	16. I Realize Again

_"What is heard has to be pondered over. What is pondered over has to be put into practice. It is only when all three have been accomplished that the realization of bliss can be attained. - Sri Sathya Sai "_

_

* * *

_

"Sorry!" I shouted at the group of Iris campers, not really meaning it. I had just accidentally drenched them in a huge wave of water. But it wasn't my fault. I came to the beach when I was angry, and when I was angry all the water in a 5-mile radius started going crazy.

And right now I was pissed off beyond pissed off. I couldn't believe Annabeth! How could she have the nerve to blame Calypso for Nico's disappearance?

And the sad part was, I would have believed her too if I hadn't seen her franternizing with Aphrodite with my own eyes. I couldn't believe myself either. After all that Annabeth had done, how could I have almost believed her over Calypso so easily?

_But what had Annabeth done anyway?_ another part of my brain cut in. _Think. What has she really done wrong?_

But trying to realize this proved to be harder than it seemed. Everytime I though back to the past couple of weeks, my mind seemed to go blank. The few memories I did remembered seemed cloudy, hazy, as if I was trying to remember a dream. What was going on with me? Was I finally going insa—

"OW!" I yelled. A pair of reed pipes had just smacked me in the head, really, _really_ hard. Picking them up, I looked around. "Who threw these?"

"Who else, you big fat idiot?" Grover trotted towards me, his face set in anger.

"Why?"

"How could you accuse Annabeth for being responsible for the Nico thing?" he all but snarled at me.

"Look Grover, I saw her talking to Aphrodite with my own eyes."

"So? Did it ever occur to you that she was asking Aphrodite who she was giving magic to?"

_Did it_ occur to me? I was pretty sure Annabeth had mentioned while we had been fighting...hadn't she?

I buried my face in my hands. "No it did not. Now could you please leave me alone? I have a headache."

"Percy, Calypso is the bad guy in this situation, not Annabeth. She's the one who got rid of Nico."

"Would you quit bagging on Calypso? What proof is there that she's the traitor?"

"Annabeth says she is." Grover said simply.

"Yeah, well I'm not just going to take someone's word for it and accuse her," I said bitterly.

Grover sighed heavily, crossing his arms behind his back and leaning back on the sand. "What do you see in Calypso anyway? She's like a thousand years old, so old-fashioned. Have you guys kissed yet, or do you have to be married first?" He chuckled.

I blushed a deep red, the question catching me off guard. I had no trouble at all recalling the events of the previous night.

Grover tensed, suddenly alert, and studied me. "What's up?"

"Nothing," I lied.

"Yeah? Then why are you redder than Mr.D that time Travis drank all his Diet Coke?"

I swallowed. "You just mentioned kissing as all, so..."

Grover smirked. "So you got embarassed? I wasn't born yesterday, you know. What's really going on?"

"Nothing, I'd just appreciate if you didn't bring up my sex life as all." Dammit! _Sex life_, wasn't really the best phrase to use in this situation.

Grover's eyes widened. "I feared this would happen." He stood up grinning triumphantly. "There! You've got to believe me now!"

I stood up too. "Believe you about what?"

"That Calypso's only dating you for sex! You didn't believe logic and the fact that she's had sex with every guy that's come to her island, but now you know!"

"Shut up!" I protested angrily. "She's my girlfriend, and what we do is none of your business!"

Grover was silent for a while. And then, he gave me a look of purest loathing. "There's no way to convince you," he sounded resigned. "You'll realize soon enough."

* * *

"Calypso?" I asked tentatively.

"Perseus?" she smiled and got up from where she had been sitting on my bed. "What is wrong? You said you would be back by half an hour. It is nearly 9 o'clock."

I swallowed. "Yeah. I...ran into someone." I sat down on the bed, running a hand through my hair. "So, I needed to talk to you about something."

"Yes?" she smiled sweetly, sitting down next to me.

"About...Annabeth." Calypso's face hardened. "I mean, it's obvious that she's to blame for this Nico thing. But she keeps denying it, and...accusing you."

"But why would I do something like this?" she said angrily. "What do I have to gain from luring the son of Hades away from camp?"

"I don't know!" I said quickly. "It's just...there's no way to prove that it's Annabeth."

"But there is!" Calypso insisted. "You yourself saw her talking to Lady Aphrodite! Tell Chiron. He will take care of it."

"But that's just the thing," I said a little uncomfortably. For some reason, I couldn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong. Grover's words kept reverberating in my head. "Annabeth says it's you. And the camp seems to trust her word more than mine."

"Then there is only one thing to do," she said seriously, "you have to make the camp believe you."

"And how do I do that?"

"By proving to the camp that this is Annabeth's doing. By catching her red-handed."

"You mean framing her?" I asked angrily, "Calypso, I could never do something like that!"

"Oh?" she challenged, casting a dark glare at me, "Yet you seem to have no problem with Annabeth _framing_ me!"

I felt like banging my head against the wall. "Of course I do Calypso! But I can't just stoop down to her level."

Calypso glared at me for a while. "Why do you not ask Lady Aphrodite what the truth is? She will know whether it is Annabeth using magic on Nico or not. Because it certainly is not me who is blackmailing her for love spells!"

"Who said anything about blackmailing?" I asked blankly.

She was silent.

"What I meant was...she probably..." Calypso stuttered, "Why else would Lady Aphrodite do all this? It has to be..."

_Calypso is the bad guy in this situation._

This wasn't happening. Out of all the scenarios I had imagined this problem being solved in, Calypso being the villian wasn't one of them. But it couldn't be. She was Calypso. She was...perfect.

"P-Perseus," Calypso swallowed. "Let's...let's forget about this." She leaned forward, grabbing my shoulders, and kissed me, full on the lips.

When she touched me, the only thing I wanted to do was melt into her kiss and forget about Grover. Forget about Nico. Forget about Annabeth.

But when she pushed me on the bed and snaked her hands up my shirt, that tiny part of my brain told me to stop, no matter how bad my body wanted to keep on going.

I pushed her off of me, breaking away from the kiss. She looked at me questioningly, her cheeks red from the kissing.

"What is wrong Perseus?" She whispered in an unmistakably lust-filled voice.

"You're the traitor," I whispered.

"Perseus!" she grabbed my collar, pressing her lips back onto mine, but I pushed her off.

_Calypso's only dating you for sex._

"Perseus!" she called after me, but it was too late. I was already out the door.

* * *

**If anyone wants to give me a celebratory hug, feel free to do so in a review.**** By the way, if any of you want to check out some more of my stories, my FictionPress link is on my profile. Check 'em out and don't forget to leave a review saying you're from FanFiction, because that'll earn you a cyber cookie fresh from my oven! And lastly, 400th reviewer gets a shout-out! Thanks so much by the way!**


	17. I Know Again

_The most emphatic place in a clause or sentence is the end. This is the climax; and, during the momentary pause that follows, that last word continues, as it were, to reverberate in the reader's mind. It has, in fact, the last word. - F.L Lucas_

_

* * *

_

I was miserable. Completely, utterly miserable.

I'd just broken up with Jared. I didn't regret it all. We just weren't meant for each other. But the thing I was miserable about was the reason I'd broken up with him. Percy.

More specifically, Percy and his whore of a girlfriend. And don't get me wrong. I'm not in denial or any of that crap (don't you hate when people go "you're in denial" and you're all "really, because I was under the impression that only I know what goes on inside of my brain, and last time I checked, I didn't like that guy."), I really am over Percy. Sure, I miss those moments I used to have with him when we were still going out, but now he was different. He'd changed, and I had fallen in love with the person he'd used to be.

The problem is, I'm not over his breaking up with me. Maybe it's just because my ego is too big for my body, or because I'm self-centered (definitely not the latter), but I just can't understand how something like this could have happened. Percy broke up with me for no reason at all other than that I wouldn't let him get in my pants? I got angry every time I thought about this, and realized just how much of a bastard he was.

I didn't know what was up with me. Percy definitely wasn't the right guy for me, but why did I have this overwhelming sense of depression? I mean, it's just one guy. I'll probably meet over a million more! Why was I getting so worked up?

...And speak of the Devil.

"What do you want?" I snapped at Percy as he walked towards me. He stopped in his tracks, looking like a deer in headlights.

He swallowed. "I...I have to talk to you about something."

"Speak." I said irritably.

"We need to get Nico back."

Him actually caring about Nico surprised me, but I didn't let it show. "No dip Sherlock."

He just stood there for a moment, looking unnerved. "So, do you have any plan as to how to get him back?"

"Plan? Am I supposed to have a battle strategy too?" I snorted. "And what makes you think I would have a plan anyway? Aren't you supposed you supposed to be Nico's 'big brother' figure or something like that? Last I checked, you're supposed to be the one coming up with the plan?" He opened his mouth to speak, but cut him off. "Oh wait, why would you worry about Nico? You're too busy making out with your girlfriend. What a great 'brother' you are."

Percy merely lowered his head instead of replying with some snarky, half-baked insult. That surprised me. "Look," he gritted his teeth, "we need to get Nico back, and fighting isn't going to get us anywhere. Now what do you have in mind?"

I smirked.

* * *

I stood at the water's edge, breathing in the fresh air, the sunshine. I'd been so busy wallowing in self-pity for the last couple of days, that I hadn't even payed any attention to what was really important. The sight of a new day, the serenity of the ocean, all that fun stuff. Yup, that's me, all zen and one with nature!

But seriously. No more of this "woe is me" stuff. I was going to live each like it was my last, and if today was my last day alive, by Zeus, the only thought in my mind would be "I need to get Nico back before that Cyclops clubs me!"

...OK, when I imagine myself dying (don't make that face, you know you've done it too) I'm getting smacked by a Cyclops. But I'll just get right to the meat and potatoes of the matter, and work out all my Cyclops related issues with Thalia later.

I tossed a golden drachma into the water, watching it glint in the sunlight as it dissolved into the mist. The place where I had tossed it shimmered for a second, and hesitantly, I called out "Lady Iris, Olympus." My voice rang out in the silence.

I bit my lip, attempting not to scream from anxiety. I was an idiot, wasn't I? Why would Lady Iris come to visit me? I'd probably zapped out of socks at any moment. T

The sky got hazy, like a bunch of mist had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. The spot in front of me shimmered, making an odd buzzing noise. And then-

Lady Iris appeared. Legit.

She was...beautiful. I know pretty much every single goddess is beautiful, but Iris was different. It wasn't just her who was beautiful...it was her...clothes?

She was wearing a dress made out of just about every color of the rainbow, and then some. It glimmered in the sunlight, as though it was made of thousand of tiny little diamonds. The colors of the dress seemed to move, blending into each other and yet still retaining their brilliant hue. It was gorgeous.

"Annabeth Chase." Whoa. Her voice wasn't anything like I had expected it to be. I thought she would be more commanding, intimidating, but her voice sounded oddly delicate, almost fragile, like a ten-year old's, but somehow still managed to have that commanding tone in it. "Why have you called me here?"

I gulped. "I need your help. Lady," I added quickly, "You see, I want to get in contact with Nico diAngelo." Iris raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. "But I don't know where he is. I know that it's...against your rules to show an IM if the location isn't stated, but this is an emergency."

"Is it life or death?" One side of Iris's mouth quirked.

"Possibly."

She sighed. "I know all about your little predicament. That accursed Aphrodite never stops twittering around about it. I suppose I can show you the Son of Hades."

My eyes widened. "Really? Oh thank you, Lady Iris! You don't know how much this means to me!"

Iris smiled, and even the sun would have dimmed in comparison. "Don't mention it. Seriously, don't. Don't let any of the gods, or Zeus will have my head." And with that, she began to glow, and I turned my face away.

Looking back, I saw that the spot where she had been standing was shimmering (she shimmers a lot doesn't she?)

A picture formed. It was Nico.

* * *

**Cliffy! And no Percy/Annabeth either. Are you disappointed? Don't worry! Next chapter's where it's at!**


	18. I Weep Again

_"It's hope. It's pride. It's love. But what would you understand, bastard? You're the tin man. No heart, no soul." - Bano

* * *

_

My fingers flew over the keys, typing in my email, my password, all that junk. It had been forever since I had been on Facebook. I was kind of too busy dealing with monster attacks and threats to the world as we knew it, that sort of thing.

There were a dozen new pictures of my roommate, Allie. I swear, if there ever was a camera whore, it would be her. Scrolling down, I realized that there wasn't really too much that I was missing. I hadn't really added a lot of "friends," since I didn't really have that many that weren't demigods, and Facebook isn't really that high on a half-blood's list of priorities. Sighing, I wondered why I had even came on. I was supposed to be telling Percy about Nico.

Nico was trapped on Ogygia. Calypso hadn't even been visiting him regularly enough to keep the spell going. How fucking (pardon my French) idiotic. I still remember that look on the poor kid's face:

_"Annabeth?" His visage was frightened, as though I was an illusion, which I probably looked like, my face popping out of the mist._

_"Nico? Nico!" I cried, a huge dead weight being lifted off my shoulders._

_"Is that an Iris-message? How'd you find me? Where's Percy? What's going on?"_

_""Calm down!" I yelled, lifting up a hand to shield my eyes. The sun sure was bright wherever he was. He was standing next to an ocean, with the cleanest, brilliantly blue water I had ever seen in my life. The sand shone white in the sun, and the cloudless sky was a bright hue._

_So Calypso imprisoned him in Hawaii?_

_"Where are you?" I asked, squinting my eyes._

_"Hades if I know!" He burst out angrily. "I've been on this stupid island for days! Calypso...she's using magic! I don't like her! She's a creepy old child molester! She had me thinking I was in love with her!"_

_I tried not to laugh. "Calm down Nico." I tried to smile reassuringly. "It'll be OK. I'm going to get you out of there."_

_"Where's Percy?" he yelled. "Didn't think to check up on me, did he? Little bastard! And what about fucking Grover? Doesn't he give a damn about me?"_

_Nico and his anger-fueled potty mouth._

_"Stop griping and listen to me!" I yelled back. "We're going to rescue you, o damsel in distress. Tell me where you are."_

_"Didn't I just tell you?" He scowled, probably at the damsel comment. "Some fucking island! Occoquan or something. Or Yu-Gi-Oh. Something along those lines."_

_"Well, Occoquan doesn't sound right, and I'm sure nobody named an island after a Japanese cartoon character." I sighed, starting to get impatient._

_"Well it's something like that! Wait...Ogygia? Does Ogygia sound familiar?"_

_And then it clicked._

Poor Nico was stuck on some crackpot island, and I was sitting here on a laptop trying to be a normal brainless teenager.I just don't get myself sometimes.

But the mind-numbing void that is Facebook was clearing my head, so I went along with it.

I clicked on my profile, and that was when I realized that it really had been forever since I'd been on. My brithdate was still June 24, 1875. Yeah, I made the friggin' account when I was twelve, so technically I wasn't the right age to actually have made it. So, me being the genius I am, I put in my birth year as 1875. Clever, I know.I was going to change that, but I guess I never got around to it.

Moving down my list of information, I saw that my "_Current City_" was still New York. I guess I forget to mention to the Facebook people that I had moved. But then, I looked towards the bottom of the list and my eyes blew up to the size of balloons. Next to a little pink heart were the words "_In a Relationship with Perseus Jackson_."

I guess that was one of the major things that I needed to change. But get this.

I didn't want to.

I bet Aphrodite is laughing at me right now. She probably brainwashed me into going on Facebook in the first place. My entire being was screaming at me to shut my brain down, to not think those dreaded, accursed words, but I did anyway.

I was still in love with Percy.

I'd denied it over and over again. But I guess that part of me, the stupid, illogical, heart-listening-to part of me knew that I was still in love with him.

And the worst part was that I couldn't do anything about it.

For the first time in days, an overwhelming sense of sadness washed over me. I hadn't let our breakup affect me, because I knew that he wasn't worth it. But my damn heart, so full of pain that it was about to explode, had to go and trick me into the inevitable: fessing up to myself. I loved him. With every fiber of my being, every breath in my lungs, every gods-forsaken tear in my eyes. I loved him with everything I had. And I was still helpless.

The tears were welling up, smarting my eyes. I closed my heavy lids and felt the hot liquid slide down my cheeks, dripping off my chin.

With trembling fingers, I grasped the mouse so hard that I might have had a personal grudge against it. Slowly, I moved it over to the little dialogue box and clicked.

I buried my face in my hands, sobbing before the bright LCD screen in front of me.

_Annabeth Chase is single. /3_


	19. I Lose Hope Again

_Helplessness induces hopelessness, and history attests that loss of hope and not loss of lives is what decides the issue of war. — B.H Liddel Heart _

* * *

"We need a quest."

Rachel put down her paintbrush, staring at me with her bright green eyes. It was obvious that she was really at home in her new cave. There were paintings everywhere, bright purple drapes hung over the stone walls in an attempt to brighten the murky environment, and in one corner, a 52" inch plasma screen TV.

"What?"

"We need a quest. I know you don't like to leave your cave very often, but I'm sure that you must have found out by now that Nico is missing."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "I love my cave. And I would appreciate it if you knocked before entering."

I sighed. "How long has it been since you've seen sunlight?"

She shrugged. "I'm hibernating."

"That happens in the winter, dumbass."

She gave me a "that's not the point" look. After the war and me and Percy's getting together, Rachel and I had been good friends. The animosity in our banter wasn't deadly anymore, it was more of a friendly thing.

"I've already given you a prophecy. There's no quest needed for it. You'll figure the answer out by yourself."

I nearly exploded. "Nico's stuck on an island! What the hell do you mean there's no quest? How are we supposed to rescue him then!"

Rachel shook her head, her mane of frizzy red hair bouncing. "You don't need a quest to rescue him."

I stared at her incredulously. "So I can rescue him from the comfort of my own home?" I asked sarcastically.

"No. But you don't need a quest to leave camp anymore. And even if you did, I'm sure Chiron would tailor the rules for these special circumstances."

I just stared at her.

She sighed. "Look, a quest is when you get a prophecy telling you where to go, what to do, all that jazz. Well, you already got a prophecy and it said, to be blunt, that you could in fact figure it out from the comfort of your own home. And you did."

"Okay, so I know where Nico is. Now how do we rescue him?"

Rachel sighed impatiently. "Ugh, do I have to paint a picture for you? No pun intended," she added, "You get off your lazy ass, get your magical boyfriend to sail you to Ogygia, and bring Nico back. Capiche?"

"That's it?" I asked dumbly.

"Yes." Rachel said slowly, as if she were talking to an kindergartner. "Now get out." She steered me to the door.

"Wait!" I turned around to face her. "One more thing."

"What?" she snapped.

"Boyfriend?"

Needless to say, I got the door slammed in my face.

* * *

I took a deep breath, willing myself to walk up to the Poseidon cabin. Unwillingly, I remembered all those times that I had come here, grinning like a maniac, walking inside like it was my own home. How different things had become in such a few short weeks.

And then I remembered the last time I had dared to knock on this door. When I had opened it up to find Percy, my Perseus Jackson, lying on the bed with Calypso, obviously about to do something that Poseidon wouldn't approve of. Or maybe he would. Calypso was the daughter of a water nymph, after all. I was just a stupid daughter of Athena, his arch enemy.

_Well_, I told myself, trying to stay optimistic. _This time, you're going to him to ask help in rescuing Calypso. No awkward scenes for you now._

I used to be able to count on one hand how many times I'd ever been wrong about something in my entire life, and for you uneducated idiots out there, that means _not a lot_. Ever since meeting Percy Jackson, however, that value had increased drastically.

When I opened the door, the scene awaiting me was less than pleasant.

There were articles of clothing scattered all over the floor. An orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt; a white skirt; a pair of jeans. And on the bed, were none other than, you guessed it, Percy and Calypso.

Once again, they were just sitting there kissing, cradled in each other's arms. But correct me if I'm mistaken, most make-out sessions don't entail the shedding of clothing. And those dumb noises they were making usually don't happen during normal kisses either.

They were so wound up in themselves, they didn't even notice me standing in the doorway with tears spilling down my cheeks.

* * *

For the first time in days, I looked in a mirror.

I was a daughter of Athena. I spent all day slaving over a calculator, figuring out measurements, calculating algorithms. A mirror wasn't really on my list of 5 things to bring to a deserted island.

But sitting here now, I thought, _maybe it should be._

The only part of my physical appearance I ever cared about was my hair. It was curly, frizzy and unruly. When I brushed it, it fluffed up in seconds, like an angry pufferfish. I never combed it for this reason, which caused it to be really tangled, and a real pain in the shower.

Right now, my hair looked like a rat's nest, probably because I'd spent the last four hours taking my anger out on training dummies, which isn't really the equivalent of going to a beauty salon, if you know what I mean. My skin was dry and cracked in some places, I realized as the moisturizer I was dabbing onto my face began to sting. The skin on my lips was peeling.

The reason I was thinking like such an Aphrodite girl was the usual reason. Percy. Freaking. Jackson.

The bastard who had turned my life upside down so easily, and hadn't even bothered to try and turn it right again.

I thought about Calypso, her perfect skin, her thick brown hair; her warm chocolate brown eyes; her heart shaped face, so innocent and pitiful. Looks could be deceiving; obviously, Percy hadn't figured that lesson out.

I was going to go take a shower. I was going to untangle my hair, and put some Chapstick on my lips; I _wasn't_ going to give Calypso an outlet to make me a mental slave anymore.

* * *

"Whoa, Annabeth! Did you _bathe_? What's the occasion?"

"Shut up Thalia." I grumbled, pushing past her and flopping myself facedown on my bed.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nico." I grumbled. "How the hell are we supposed to rescue the little brat?"

"You're at the epitome of sisterly-love, Annabeth," Thalia said sarcastically. "Remind me again why you have to rescue him? He's a big boy, he's got two hands and feet. Let him do it himself."

I sighed impatiently, lifting myself into a sitting position and blowing my wet hair out of my face. "Oh yeah? I suppose he's going to swim back, is he? I'm sure it'll be a sight to see. Like an emo fish on steroids."

"Easy, sarcasm. Can't he get some ghost buddies to bring him back? Or, I don't know sail back?"

"Yeah, the undead are going to carry him to shore. And I'm sure Poseidon won't blast a child of Hades out of the water. No risk at all. Really, Thalia, sometimes you're as dumb as Seawee—" I stopped myself.

Thalia eyed me curiously. "Well, now that we've established that I'm dumb, let's focus back on the Nico problem. Say, here's an idea!" She smacked her forehead and grinned like an idiot. "How about," she said in a country accent, "we head over to ol' _Seawee_'s cabin and ask him to take us there?"

I scowled at her. "If you haven't realized, Nico's imprisoned on Calypso's island. Calypso, as in Percy's _girlfriend_." It still hurt to say it. "How are we supposed to ask him for help?"

Thalia buried her face in her hands. "Gods, Annabeth, you're so dense." She sighed and propped herself onto her elbows. "Let me draw this out for you: You tell Percy the truth about Snow White, you to rush off to rescue Emo Boy, and then you kiss passionately and live happily ever after."

I blushed. "No thank you," I said coolly. "Only when Hades freezes over would I ever want to get back together with Percy Jacks—" But once again, I didn't get to finish his name.

Because right at that moment, the door flung open, and in came none other than Percy Jackson himself.

"Oh golly!" Thalia cried in that dumb accent. "Speak of the devil and he shall arrive. Oh wait," she added, "that's not entirely accurate. I suppose for your case, it's speak of the devil and _she _shall arrive."

Percy ignored her.

"So, what are you doing here, Kelp Face? Or should I say _Seawee_?"

"What?" He looked nonplussed for a moment, but decided that it was better not to ask.

"What do you want?" I asked coldly.

He glanced at me for a moment, but then looked away quickly, like I was Medusa or something. "Nico." He said simply. "We need to do something about Nico."

"Yeah, we do. Nice of you to notice," I said, layering my voice with sugar.

He steeled himself to look me in the eyes, but that reluctant look was obvious on his face. "Look," he said. "We need to find Nico, and if you don't have any answers, then I guess I'll have to ask someone else."

That comment instantly revved up my anger. He didn't think I was capable of rescuing Nico? "You want answers, I'll give you answers. Or better yet, why don't you ask your little _girlfriend _for some answers?"

"What?" I imagined Percy's ears perking up like a dog's, ready for someone to throw him a bone. Of course any mention of Calypso would intrigue him.

"You know what?" Thalia spoke up. She had been so quiet during our argument that I had forgotten that she was even there. We both turned our heads towards her. "I think I've found a better name than Seawee. _Peewee_." Her voice was cajoling, but I knew her well enough to read that expression on her face, like _you're treading on dangerous territory_.

Obviously, Percy didn't know her as well. "Seriously?" he asked.

"You're right," she nodded, "_Seaweenie_ sounds much better. It's got a nice ring to it don't you think?"

Percy turned back to me. "What did you say about Calypso?"

I took a deep breath. Watch yourself Annabeth. "She's the one to blame for this whole mess. She blackmailed Aphrodite into giving her love magic, she lured Nico away from camp, and _she _sent him to Ogygia!"

Silence.

"Nico's on Ogygia?"

"Yes you idiot!" I exploded. "Nico's on Ogygia, the island home of your stupid girlfriend! He's been there for days, dazed and thinking he was in love with Calypso while she hid out here!" I paused, breathing heavily. "You sure know how to pick 'em."

He stared at me for a second, and I saw a range of emotions pass in his sea-green eyes. Shock, bewilderment, anger, accusations. And then, he did something that I would never have expected.

He hung his head.

"I should've known." He whispered.

I was stunned, but I didn't let me voice betray me. "How could you? You were too busy making out with your girlfriend."

He looked up, and I couldn't quite read the expression in his eyes. "She's not my girlfriend anymore," he said. "I broke up with her."

Nobody said anything for a moment. And then—

"Aw snap!" Thalia shouted, waving her hand up and down. "This is better than cable!"

"You broke up with her?" I whispered. Then what was...? "When?"

Percy was suddenly very interested in his sneakers. "Last week."

Anger helped me get over my shock real quick. Did he think I was in idiot? "I bet." I said icily.

He looked up. "Really, I did."

"Sure didn't look like it." I muttered.

His eyebrows came together, but he shook his head. "We need to get Nico back." Percy said seriously. "I'll talk to Chiron and Grover. We're leaving tomorrow."

I just nodded, too angry to speak.

* * *

**I apologize for the lateness. Don't forget to leave a review. I'm not going to change the ending I've got in mind, but I'm curious to know what you guys want to happen. So review. 600th reviewer gets a shout-out, and I actually mean it this time.**

**And oh yeah. Next chapter's last.**


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